Social Security Disability Benefits for Children

Social Security Disability benefits provide physically and mentally impaired individuals with the funds they need to support their basic living expenses when they are unable to maintain substantial employment. These benefits are also available for children if they meet certain requirements outlined below.

The Lynch Law Firm, PC’s Social Security Disability attorneys in New Jersey are committed to helping you and your family receive the full amount of benefits you need. If you need qualified legal help with your application, contact us to discuss your child’s claim.

How Children Qualify for Benefits

There are three ways in which children can qualify for disability benefits:

Low-Income Disabled Children

Children under the age of 18 who suffer from a physical or mental disability may be eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) if they meet the following requirements:

• The child is not working or earning more than $1,180, as of 2018.
• The child has a physical or mental condition, or a combination of conditions, that significantly limits the child’s ability to engage in certain activities.
• The child has a disabling condition that is expected to last for at least 12 months or result in his or her death.

SSI benefits are available for children who meet the SSA’s disability requirements and belong to a family that has little income or access to financial resources.

Once a disabled child reaches the age of 18, he or she will be reevaluated for disability benefits and must meet the SSA’s adult definition of disability to continue to receive SSI benefits.

Dependent Benefits

Children may also be eligible for Social Security Disability payments if they have a parent, stepparent or adoptive parent who is receiving Social Security retirement payments or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or who was entitled to one of those benefits before he or she died.

When a child receives disability payments based on a parent’s record, he or she receives auxiliary or dependent benefits. Some children who may qualify to receive these benefits include the claimant’s:

• Biological child
• Adopted child
• Dependent grandchild, if the child does not have a living parent

Typically, a child who is eligible for dependent benefits is entitled to receive up to 50 percent of the claimant’s monthly benefit amount.

To receive dependent benefits, the child must be unmarried and under the age of 18. He or she can receive these benefits up to the age of 19 if he or she is still in high school.

Disabled Adult Children

A young adult who is older than 18 and became disabled before reaching the age of 22 may qualify for “adult child” benefits if a parent is receiving Social Security retirement or disability benefits or who has died and was eligible for either benefit. This is essentially an extension of dependent benefits, as it is based off the parent’s qualifying earning record. .

“Adult child” benefits can be continued for as long as the disabled young adult continues to meet the SSA’s definition of a disabled adult.

These benefits can be provided to adult children who are much older than 18 or 22 years old. This occurs when the disabled child’s parent does not start collecting Social Security benefits until retirement. When this happens, the claimant’s disabled child becomes eligible for the “adult child” benefits.

Contact Us for Help with Your Social Security Disability Benefits

Often, recovering Social Security Disability benefits for children can be a complicated process. An experienced lawyer with the Lynch Law Firm, PC can help you with your child’s claim if he or she has been denied disability benefits. We will provide a free, no obligation consultation to review your claim.

We provide all of our services on a contingency fee basis, which means we only get paid if we help you and your family obtain the Social Security Disability benefits you deserve.

Complete a Free Case Evaluation form to get started.