How to sign your child up for disability

Apply For A Child (Under Age 18) | Disability Benefits

SSI provides monthly cash payments to help meet the basic needs of children who have a physical or mental disability or who are blind. If you care for a child or teenager with a disability, and have limited income and savings or other resources, your child may be eligible for SSI.

SSI Eligibility for Children

Children under age 18 can get SSI if they meet Social Security's definition of disability for children and there are limited income and resources in the household. Social Security defines a disability as:

The child must have a physical or mental condition(s) that very seriously limits his or her activities; and
The condition(s) must have lasted, or be expected to last, at least 1 year or result in death.

How to Apply

Tell us you want to apply for SSI for a child

Get Started

Other Ways to Apply

Apply By Phone¹

Call us to make an appointment to file an application at 1-800-772-1213. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you can call us at TTY 1-800-325-0778.

¹ If you are in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and received a letter from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services with a specific phone number, please use that number for the best service.

Begin the Application Online

Applying for SSI requires 2 steps. You will need to complete the online Child Disability Report AND, with the help of a Social Security representative, complete an Application for SSI.

Step 1

TIP: Before completing the Child Disability Report, use our Child Disability Starter Kit to get answers to commonly asked questions about applying for SSI. The kit also includes a worksheet that will help you gather the information you need.

Fill out the online Child Disability Report

The report usually takes about an hour to complete and collects information about the child's disabling condition and how it affects their ability to function.

We will ask you to sign a form that gives the child's doctor(s) permission to give us information about their disability. We need this information so that we can make a decision on the child's claim. In some cases, if the child is over age 12, he or she must sign his or her own medical release.

Start the Child Disability Report

If you previously started a Child Disability Report for this child but did not finish it, you can use your re-entry number to return to your online Child Disability Report.

Step 2

After you submit a report, we will call you within 3-5 business days. Together, we will:

Review the completed Child Disability Report.
Discuss whether the income and resources of the household are within the allowed limits.
Start the SSI application process.

Child Disability Starter Kit Fact Sheet

Child Disability Starter Kit - Fact Sheet

What You Should Know Before You Apply for SSI Disability Benefits for a Child

Children from birth up to age 18 may get Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. They must be disabled and they must have little or no income and resources. Here are answers to some questions people ask about applying for SSI for children.

How does Social Security decide if a child is disabled?

Social Security has a strict definition of disability for children.

The child must have a physical or mental condition(s) that very seriously limits his or her activities; and
The condition(s) must have lasted, or be expected to last, at least 1 year or result in death.

A state agency makes the disability decision. They review the information you give us. They will also ask for information from medical and school sources and other people who know about the child.

If the state agency needs more information, they will arrange an examination or test for the child, which we will pay for.

How does Social Security decide if a child can get SSI?

Children can get SSI if they meet Social Security’s definition of disability for children and if they have little or no income and resources. We also consider the family’s household income, resources and other personal information.

How will I know what Social Security has decided?

We will send you a letter. It can take 3 to 5 months to decide a child’s SSI disability claim. Let us know if your address or telephone number changes so that we can get in touch with you.

Will my personal information be kept safe?

Yes. Social Security protects the privacy of those we serve. As a federal agency, we are required by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 522a) to protect the information we get from you.

What if I am more comfortable speaking in a language other than English?

We provide free interpreter services to help you conduct your Social Security business.

Other Important Information

SSI is not a medical assistance program. Your state Medicaid agency, local health department, social services office or hospital can help you find your nearest health care agencies. Your Social Security office can also help you find health care agencies.

Medicaid

Medicaid is a health care program for people with low incomes and limited resources. In most states, children who get SSI benefits can also get Medicaid. Even if your child cannot get SSI, he or she may be able to get Medicaid. Your state Medicaid agency, Social Security office or your state or county social services office can give you more information.

State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)

Children may be able to get health insurance from SCHIP even if they do not get SSI. SCHIP provides health insurance to children from working families with incomes too high to get Medicaid, but who cannot afford private health insurance. SCHIP provides insurance for prescription drugs and for vision, hearing and mental health services in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Your state Medicaid agency can provide more information about SCHIP. You can also go to www.insurekidsnow.gov/ or call toll free 1-877-KIDS-NOW (1-877-543-7669) for more information on your state’s program.

Other Health Care Services

If the child is under age 16 and we decide he or she is disabled and can get SSI, we will refer him or her to your state children’s agencies for social, developmental, educational and medical services. Even if the child cannot get SSI, these state agencies may be able to help him or her.

Work Opportunities for Young People Who are Getting SSI

Many young people who get SSI disability benefits want to work. The following information may be helpful.

We do not count most of a child’s earnings when we figure the SSI payment. We count even less of a child’s earnings if the child is a student.
We subtract the cost of certain items and services that a child needs to work from his or her earnings in figuring the SSI payment.
If a child is age 15 or older, he or she can establish a Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS). With a PASS, a child can set aside income for a work goal. We will not count this income when we figure the SSI payment.
A child’s Medicaid coverage can continue even if his or her earnings are high enough to stop SSI payment, as long as the earnings are under a certain amount.

Social Security has two programs that can assist young people who get SSI disability benefits and want to go to work:

Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA)
Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) program

Your local Social Security office can provide more information about these programs. You can also find more information on our Work website, www.socialsecurity.gov/work/.

How to solve the problem of refusals to assign disabilities to children?

A working meeting was held in the Federation Council on the problems of assigning the appropriate status to children with disabilities. The decision to study this issue was made at the 372nd meeting of the Chamber on the initiative of the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Construction Lyudmila Bokova .

The senator said that a number of regions are receiving complaints about the difficulties that have arisen this year with the registration of disability for minors. There is a growing number of cases when institutions of medical and social expertise, based on the results of medical and diagnostic measures, refuse to assign the status of a "disabled child" to children who were considered disabled for several years and received the necessary social protection and rehabilitation on the basis of this. “Failure to receive the proper level of rehabilitation will greatly affect the health of the child,” emphasized Ludmila Bokova .

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How to apply for disability in 2022

There are 11 million 631 thousand people with disabilities in Russia. Every twelfth inhabitant of the country is an adult or a child with a disability. This status often means not only physical, but also social restrictions: from difficulties with training and employment to visiting shops and theaters. To support such people around the world, the UN 15 years ago opened the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for signing. And ten years ago this document was ratified in Russia. What has changed during this time - understood our publication.

Invisible people

In 2021, according to Rosstat, 11 million 631 thousand citizens with disabilities lived in Russia. Of these, 6 million 499 thousand women and 5 million 134 thousand men had this status. There are 704 thousand children with disabilities in Russia, according to the latest official data.

The list of diseases for obtaining disability in Russia has not changed for several years. Among the main causes are general diseases and occupational injuries. Among them: diabetes, heart attack, asthma, epilepsy, oncology and even depression and psoriasis, as well as amputation and others.

At the same time, the list of causes of childhood disability is different: mental illness and mental retardation are in the first place with 30 percent of all diagnoses, then (24 percent) are congenital anomalies, then (10) are disruption of the endocrine system, and, finally, neurology and disorders motor function (8 and 5 percent, respectively).

At the same time, society still often does not notice either the people with disabilities themselves or their problems. Thus, according to a poll by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center in November 2021, 30 percent of Russians said they did not personally know people with disabilities, and another 9percent said they had never met such people either on the street or in public places.

Where disabled people live best

According to Rosstat, most disabled people live in the Central Federal District. Here, the largest population, respectively, and the number of disabled people is greater. A smaller number of disabled people was noted in the Volga Federal District. Next comes the Northwestern Federal District, where St. Petersburg dominates. The smallest number in the Far East. And in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug there are less than two thousand such people.

Regions differ not only in the number of people with disabilities, but also in the conditions that they can provide. The latest rating of regions with the most accessible social infrastructure for such people was compiled by the Ministry of Labor even before the pandemic, in 2018.

According to these data, the most comfortable living for disabled people is in the Lipetsk region, where 96.6 percent of social, transport and engineering infrastructure facilities are accessible to people with disabilities.

In second place in this indicator is the Republic of Komi: there are 9 such objects4 percent. This is followed by the Republic of Mari El (91.6 percent), Yaroslavl (91.6) and Pskov regions (91).

The regions with the least accessible social infrastructure for people with disabilities are Khakassia (28. 1 percent), Ivanovo (29.7), Astrakhan (38.2), Oryol (46.3) and Orenburg (54) areas.

At the same time, in Russia as a whole, 64.1 percent of social facilities, according to the Ministry of Labor, then turned out to be accessible to people with disabilities.

What the convention prescribes

The different levels of opportunities for people with disabilities not only within the same country, but also in different states, were noticed in the United Nations back in 2006. As a result, in 2006, the UN adopted the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In 2007, the document was opened for signing by countries, and in 2008 the convention entered into force.

According to the document, the signatory countries undertake to ensure the realization of all human rights and freedoms without discrimination on the basis of disability. And for this guarantee, for example:

- accessibility of persons with disabilities to transport, to information and communications, as well as to facilities and services;

- recognition of the rights of persons with disabilities to education and ensuring access to it;

- expansion in the labor market of employment opportunities for disabled people and their promotion;

- providing persons with disabilities with the same range of free or low-cost health care services and programs as others. And so on.

What has changed in Russia

It took several years to bring Russian legislation into line with these and other norms. For this, 36 federal and 715 regional legislative acts were adopted, the Government reported on the work done in 2016. In real life, this was embodied in thousands of ramps installed throughout the country, the creation of specially designated parking spaces for the disabled, the purchase of automobile and urban transport available for the transportation of disabled people.

During the first five years of the implementation of the state program, the number of schools where disabled children could study increased by 4.8 times, and the number of institutions for adaptive sports for disabled people increased from 15 in 2011 to 57 institutions in 2016. Also, on six all-Russian TV channels, the number of subtitles increased from 3 to 14 thousand hours a year, which amounted to almost 30 percent of the airtime.

Work to ensure the rights of disabled people in Russia continues today, State Duma deputy, chairman of the All-Russian Society of Disabled People Mikhail Terentyev told Parliamentary Newspaper.

“A large block of bills was adopted in 2021, it is also planned to introduce changes to the legislation in 2022,” the deputy said.

New in 2022

Thus, from January 1, pensions for disabled people are calculated automatically. The new procedure involves the appointment of insurance and social disability pensions on a non-declared basis. At the same time, information about a person enters the Pension Fund through a system of interdepartmental interaction. And the process of assigning a pension takes no more than five days, after which the person receives a notification.

“Thanks to the new rules, people with disabilities will receive their pension within a month after being appointed and without unnecessary bureaucracy,” said Terentiev.

From March 1, the size of the quota for employees with disabilities will depend on the number of employees of the enterprise. Such amendments have been made to the Law “On Employment in the Russian Federation”. As with the current rules, the size of the quota will depend on the number of employees. Thus, for employers with more than 100 employees, a quota for hiring disabled people is set in the amount of 2 to 4 percent of the average number of employees. For employers whose number of employees is from 35 to 100 people inclusive - no more than 3 percent of the average number of employees. The specific size of the quota is determined by the legislation of the subject.

In addition, as of March 1, inquiries for the employment of disabled people will be stricter. Since that time, a legislative norm has come into force that supplements the measures of social protection of persons with disabilities in the field of employment. According to these changes, the quota for the disabled will be considered fulfilled by the employer only when formal employment contracts are concluded with the required number of people with disabilities.

“Before that, it was enough if the employer simply created such positions and announced them, which was not always true,” commented the deputy.

Also, until July 1, 2022, disability can be obtained in a simplified manner. Until that time, the Temporary procedure for recognizing a person as a disabled person has been extended, which simplifies the procedure for registering a disability, without the personal presence of a citizen.

“This allows us to minimize social contacts of citizens during the period of countering the spread of coronavirus infection,” said Mikhail Terentyev.

In addition, the State Duma passed a bill on free hospitalization of disabled children with their parents in the first reading.

“Currently, free hospitalization with parents is provided only for children under four years of age. The new document recognizes the status of a "disabled child" as a sufficient basis for making a decision on the presence of such a child together with one of his relatives in a hospital at no cost to him, without additional medical indications. the deputy said.

Another document that is planned to be adopted in the spring session is on free higher education for certain categories of disabled people. This rule is planned to be extended to citizens who, having received a disability, are unable to work in their former specialty. The document has already passed the first reading and is ready for further consideration, Mikhail Terentyev specified.

Where to start?

The deputy also told in detail how to apply for disability under the new rules and what changes may appear in this procedure in the near future. According to the rules valid until July 1, 2022, the procedure for registering disability has been simplified. It is carried out without the personal presence of a citizen.

“This makes it possible to minimize the social contacts of citizens during the period of countering the spread of coronavirus infection,” said Mikhail Terentyev.

Specialists of the medical and social expertise make an absentee decision on the establishment of disability both for the first time and when extending disability based on documents issued by medical organizations, the expert clarified.

“If a disability is registered for the first time, then the medical organization itself sends the entire package of documents for a citizen to the ITU bureau in the form of an electronic document or on paper,” the deputy said.

At the same time, a citizen must contact a medical organization and undergo the necessary specialist doctors and examinations.

“If during the period of the Temporary Order a disabled child reaches the age of 18, then the extension of disability is carried out by establishing I, II or III disability groups for a period of 6 months,” the expert said.

After July 1, the medical and social examination will work, taking into account the proposed changes in the rules for recognizing a person as disabled. They are being considered right now, said Terentiev.

The main proposals are as follows:

- introduction of a provision according to which a citizen can choose between full-time and part-time examination;

- normative consolidation of the provision on the remote form of appeal against the decision of the ITU in a higher authority;

- the introduction of a single consent of a citizen to conduct activities and examinations provided for by the program of additional examinations (the citizen will have the right to refuse to conduct additional examinations, in this case, the decision to recognize a citizen as disabled or to refuse to establish disability should be made on the basis of information available to the ITU ).

What else is required?

In addition to the benefits listed above, which are effective from 2022, people with disabilities are entitled to other benefits.

Benefits in the sphere of labor

For employees with group I or II disability, the working week may not exceed 35 hours. For all disabled people, regardless of the disability group, an annual paid leave of at least 30 calendar days a year is established, and unpaid leave is also provided for up to 60 calendar days a year.

“At the same time, employment services should work in a proactive mode, help a person with a disability in finding a job and adapting to the workplace. On the Jobs in Russia website, you can find vacancies within the framework of the quota system for jobs for the disabled,” advised Mikhail Terentyev.

Also, one of the parents (guardian or custodian) for the care of disabled children, upon his written application, is provided with four additional paid days off per month.

Benefits in the field of housing and communal services

Disabled people and families with disabled children are provided with compensation for the cost of housing and utilities in the amount of 50 percent.

“Also, disabled people of groups I and II, disabled children, citizens with disabled children, are provided with compensation for the cost of paying a contribution for major repairs in the amount of 50 percent,” the expert said.

Tax incentives

Disabled people of groups I and II, disabled since childhood, children with disabilities are exempted from paying property tax (in relation to one object).

“When paying land tax, a benefit is provided in the form of a reduction in the tax base by the amount of the cadastral value of 600 square meters of one land plot (disabled people of groups I and II; disabled children, disabled children; disabled veterans of the Second World War and disabled combatants)”, — specified expert.

In addition, disabled people are provided with benefits in the field of education (when entering a university), in the field of transport (to pay for OSAGO, free parking, when paying for public transport, railway and air transport), free provision of technical means of rehabilitation, preferential provision medicines.

“It should also be noted that the Circle of Kindness Foundation, established by presidential decree, supports children with severe life-threatening diseases (including orphan ones): it purchases expensive drugs and pays for the necessary treatment,” recalled Mikhail Terentyev.

More detailed information about benefits for people with disabilities can be found on the website of the All-Russian Society of the Disabled in the "Answers to the most frequently asked questions" section.

“Special attention should be paid to the fact that, in accordance with regional legislation, persons with disabilities may be provided with additional measures of social support.