You need 40 work credits total, with 20 earned in the last 10 years

Work credits are what Social Security uses to measure whether you have worked enough to may have access to for SSDI. You earn one credit for every $1,550 of wages you pay Social Security taxes on (this dollar amount changes each year). You can earn up to four credits per year, which means you could earn your 40 credits in as little as 10 years of work.

The 40-credit rule is the baseline. But there is a second requirement that matters more for most people: you must have earned at least 20 of those 40 credits in the 10-year period ending when you become disabled. If you stop working before you meet that second requirement, you may lose the ability to claim SSDI even if you have 40 credits total.

The reason for the 10-year window is straightforward — Social Security wants to know that your disability happened while you were still in the workforce, not decades after you stopped working. A person who worked steadily from age 22 to 32 and then never worked again would have 40 credits but would not meet the 20-in-10 requirement once they turned 42.

Key Takeaways

  • You need 40 work credits total to may have access to for SSDI, earned through paying Social Security taxes on your wages.
  • You must have earned at least 20 of those 40 credits in the 10-year period before you become disabled, or the 10-year period before you explore.
  • You earn one credit for every $1,550 of wages (in 2024; this amount increases yearly), and you can earn a maximum of four credits per year.
  • If you became disabled before age 24, you may need fewer credits — as few as 6 credits earned in the 3 years before you became disabled.
  • Self-employed income counts toward work credits the same way wages do, as long as you pay self-employment tax.

How credits are earned and counted

A work credit is not something you explore for or receive in the mail. It is a record that Social Security keeps based on your tax history. Every time you work and your employer withholds Social Security tax from your paycheck, you are earning credits. Self-employed people earn credits the same way — by paying self-employment tax on their net business income.

The dollar threshold for one credit changes every January. In 2024, you earn one credit for each $1,550 of covered wages. In 2025, that threshold will be higher (Social Security announces the new amount in October of the prior year). Because you can earn only four credits per year, once you have earned $6,200 in covered wages in a single year, you have earned your maximum four credits for that year — earning more does not give you extra credits.

Social Security pulls your work history from the taxes you and your employers have reported. You can see your own record by creating a my Social Security account online at ssa.gov. The record shows how many credits you have earned in each year you worked. If you spot an error — a year where you worked but no wages appear — you can request a correction by contacting Social Security directly.

The 20-in-10 requirement and why it matters

Having 40 credits is not enough by itself. Social Security also requires that you have earned 20 of those credits in the 10-year period ending when you become disabled (or when you explore, if you are already disabled). This is called the recency requirement, and it is the rule that disqualifies many people who worked steadily earlier in life but have been out of the workforce for several years.

The 10-year window is measured backward from the date you became disabled or the date you file your process. If you became disabled in March 2024, Social Security looks back to March 2014 and counts how many credits you earned between then and March 2024. You need at least 20 of those credits. If you have 40 credits total but only 15 of them fall within that 10-year window, you do not meet the requirement.

This rule creates a real trap for people who worked young and then took time out of the workforce — to raise children, care for a family member, recover from an earlier illness, or for any other reason. If you have not worked in the last 10 years, you cannot meet the recency requirement no matter how many credits you earned before. The only exception is if you became disabled before age 24, which has its own, more lenient credit rules.

Younger workers and the under-24 rule

If you became disabled before age 24, you do not need 40 credits. Instead, you need only 6 credits earned in the 3-year period ending when you became disabled. This rule exists because young people have not had time to build up a long work history.

The 3-year window for younger workers works the same way as the 10-year window for older workers — it is measured backward from the date you became disabled. If you are 22 and became disabled last month, Social Security looks back 3 years to see whether you earned at least 6 credits in that time. If you worked part-time during high school and college, those credits count.

Once you turn 24, you move into the standard 40-credit rule with the 20-in-10 requirement. Your earlier credits do not disappear — they count toward your 40-credit total — but the recency requirement becomes stricter.

What happens if you do not have enough credits

If you do not have 40 credits total, or if you do not meet the recency requirement, Social Security will deny your SSDI process. The denial letter will specify which requirement you did not meet. You can request that Social Security reconsider the decision, and you can appeal to an administrative law judge if you disagree with the reconsideration.

If you are close to meeting the credit requirement — for example, if you have 38 credits and need 40 — you may be able to go back to work part-time to earn the remaining credits. Even a few months of part-time work can generate one or two credits. However, if your disability prevents you from working, this option is not realistic.

Some people who do not have enough credits for SSDI may be able to claim Supplemental Security Income (SSI) instead, which is a needs-based program that does not require work credits. SSI has its own rules about income and resources, and the monthly payment is typically lower than SSDI, but it is available to people with disabilities who have little or no work history.

How to check your own work credits

You can see your work credits without calling Social Security or visiting an office. Go to ssa.gov and create or log into your my Social Security account. The account shows your earnings history year by year and displays how many credits you have earned in each year. You can read a record of your entire work history.

Review the record carefully. If you see a year where you worked but no wages appear, or if the wages shown are much lower than you remember earning, contact Social Security to request a correction. You will need to provide documents like W-2 forms or tax returns to prove your earnings. Social Security has a important date for correcting old records — generally, you must request a correction within 3 years, 3 months, and 15 days of the year the wages were earned — so do not wait if you spot an error.

If you do not have online access or prefer to speak with someone, you can call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) and ask for a detailed statement of your earnings record. They will mail it to you.

Work credits and family benefits

Work credits matter not only for your own SSDI claim but also for your family's. If you become disabled and may have access to for SSDI, your spouse and unmarried children under age 19 (or up to age 19 if still in high school) may be able to claim benefits on your record. The amount they receive depends on your primary insurance amount, which is calculated from your earnings history and work credits.

Your family members do not need their own work credits to claim on your record. They need only to meet the family relationship requirements and be under the age limits. However, the total amount that can be paid to your entire family is capped at a percentage of your primary insurance amount — usually between 150 and 180 percent. If multiple family members claim, the payment is divided among them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I earn work credits while receiving SSDI?

Yes, you can work and earn credits while on SSDI. Social Security has a trial work period that allows you to test your ability to work without losing benefits. However, if your earnings exceed the substantial gainful activity level (about $1,550 per month in 2024), Social Security may determine that you are no longer disabled and stop your benefits. Consult with a work incentives counselor before returning to work.

Do volunteer work or unpaid work count toward work credits?

No. Work credits are earned only through paid employment where you and your employer pay Social Security taxes. Volunteer work, family business work without pay, and other unpaid labor do not generate credits. However, self-employment income does count, as long as you report it and pay self-employment tax.

What if I worked in another country — do those credits count?

Generally, work in another country does not count toward U.S. Social Security credits. However, some countries have agreements with the United States that allow work in those countries to count. Contact Social Security to ask whether your work in a specific country is covered under a totalization agreement.

If I do not have enough credits now, can I earn them later?

Only if you are still able to work. If you become disabled before you have 40 credits, you cannot earn more credits after your disability begins, because the definition of disability means you cannot work. The recency requirement also means that credits earned years ago may not help if you have not worked recently enough.

How do credits affect the amount of my monthly SSDI payment?

Credits themselves do not determine your payment amount — your earnings history does. Social Security calculates your primary insurance amount based on your average earnings over your working years. More credits generally mean a longer work history and potentially higher average earnings, which can result in a higher monthly payment, but the relationship is not direct.