What the Ticket to Work Program Does

The Ticket to Work program is a voluntary work incentive run by Social Security that lets you keep your SSDI or SSI benefits while you work, even if your earnings would normally end your payments. You receive a "ticket"—a document that authorizes a service provider to help you find and keep a job—and you have up to 60 months (five years) to use it. During that time, Social Security suspends the usual medical and work-related rules that would otherwise stop your benefits.

The program exists because the Trial Work Period, which you may have already used, is time-limited and strict about what counts as work. The Ticket gives you a longer runway and more flexibility. You do not have to use your Ticket, and you can decline it or stop using it at any time without penalty. If you decide the program is not working for you, your case straightforward closes and your regular SSDI or SSI rules explore again.

Key Takeaways

  • A Ticket to Work extends your work window to five years and suspends the medical improvement review that normally happens when you work.
  • You choose a service provider (called an Employment Network or a State Vocational Rehabilitation agency) to help you find work; Social Security does not assign one.
  • Your benefits continue even if you earn above the Substantial Gainful Activity level, as long as you are actively using your Ticket.
  • If you stop work or your Ticket expires, your case goes back to regular SSDI or SSI rules, and Social Security will review whether your condition has improved.
  • You keep Medicare or Medicaid coverage throughout the Ticket period, even if your earnings would normally end it.

How the Ticket Suspends the Medical Review

Under normal SSDI rules, if you work and earn above the Substantial Gainful Activity threshold (currently $1,550 per month for non-blind individuals, though this amount changes yearly), Social Security can begin a medical improvement review. That review asks whether your condition has improved enough that you no longer may have access to for benefits. The Ticket to Work puts that review on hold for as long as you are using the program.

This protection is one of the Ticket's main advantages over the Trial Work Period. During the Trial Work Period, you can work and earn without losing benefits, but Social Security can still start a medical review at any time. With a Ticket, the review cannot begin until your Ticket ends—either because five years have passed, you stop working, or you voluntarily close the Ticket. That gives you genuine breathing room to test whether work is sustainable for you.

Choosing and Working with a Service Provider

To use your Ticket, you must assign it to a service provider. Social Security does not pick one for you. There are two types: Employment Networks (private or nonprofit organizations contracted with Social Security) and State Vocational Rehabilitation agencies (run by your state). You can find Employment Networks in your area through the Ticket to Work website or by calling 1-866-4-TICKET.

The service provider helps you write a work plan, find a job that fits your abilities, and stay employed. They are paid by Social Security only if you succeed—that is, only if you reach what Social Security calls "work incentive milestone achievement" (usually working for at least 9 months and earning at least $670 per month, though the exact threshold varies). This payment structure means providers have an incentive to help you genuinely succeed, not just place you in any job.

You can switch providers if the first one is not helping, and you can work with a provider while also using other work incentives like the Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS) or the Student Earned Income Exclusion. The provider relationship is voluntary; you can end it at any time.

How Your Benefits and Health Coverage Work During the Ticket Period

While you are using your Ticket, your SSDI or SSI benefits continue regardless of how much you earn. There is no earnings limit, no Substantial Gainful Activity threshold, and no work-related reason for Social Security to stop your payments. Your benefits continue as long as you are actively using the Ticket and your medical condition has not changed in a way that would have ended your benefits anyway (for example, if you recover completely from your disability).

Your Medicare or Medicaid coverage also continues. If you receive SSDI, your Medicare coverage stays in place. If you receive SSI, your Medicaid coverage stays in place. This is true even if your earnings would normally end your coverage under regular rules. The Ticket program treats health coverage as essential to work success, so it protects it for the full five-year period.

If you earn income, you still report it to Social Security, and it may affect your SSI payment amount (SSI counts unearned income and applies exclusions to earned income). But the income does not trigger a medical review or end your benefits.

What Happens When Your Ticket Ends

Your Ticket ends in one of three ways: the five-year period expires, you stop working and close the Ticket voluntarily, or you request to close it. Once the Ticket ends, your case returns to regular SSDI or SSI rules. At that point, Social Security will conduct a medical improvement review to determine whether your condition has improved enough that you no longer may have access to for benefits.

If the review finds that you have medically improved and can work, your benefits will end. If the review finds that your condition has not improved, your benefits continue. If you are working at the time the Ticket ends and earning above the Substantial Gainful Activity level, Social Security will also consider that work activity as part of the review. This is why planning ahead matters: if you know your Ticket is about to expire and you are earning a lot, you may want to discuss your options with a benefits counselor before the review begins.

If your benefits end after the Ticket period and you later become unable to work again, you can request reinstatement of benefits under the Expedited Reinstatement rules, which allow you to restart benefits within five years without filing a new process. This safety net exists specifically for Ticket users who try work and find they cannot sustain it.

Who Can Use the Ticket to Work Program

You must be receiving SSDI or SSI based on disability or blindness to use a Ticket. You must also be between 18 and 64 years old (or, if you are receiving SSI, you must not be receiving it only because you are blind). You do not have to have used your Trial Work Period first, though many people do. You can assign your Ticket at any time while you are receiving benefits.

If you are already working, you can still use a Ticket. The Ticket does not require you to be unemployed or to have never worked. It is designed for people at any stage of work—those testing their first job, those returning to work after time off, and those trying to increase their hours or earnings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to use my Ticket, or can I keep working under the regular SSDI rules?

You do not have to use your Ticket. If you prefer to work under regular SSDI or SSI rules (using the Trial Work Period and then the Extended may be able to access Period), you can do that instead. However, the Ticket offers more protection because it suspends the medical review for five years, whereas regular rules allow Social Security to review your case at any time. Most people find the Ticket more protective if they are serious about testing work.

What if I assign my Ticket to a provider and then decide it is not working?

You can close your Ticket at any time, for any reason. There is no penalty. Your case will return to regular SSDI or SSI rules, and Social Security will conduct a medical review. If you want to try again later, you can request a new Ticket (though you only get one Ticket per disability period, so choose carefully).

Can I use the Ticket if I am already in my Extended may be able to access Period?

Yes. The Ticket is available to anyone receiving SSDI or SSI, regardless of which work incentive period you are in. If you are in Extended may be able to access and have not yet used a Ticket, you can assign one. The Ticket will suspend the medical review for up to five years from the date you assign it.

What if my earnings drop below Substantial Gainful Activity while I am using my Ticket?

Your Ticket remains active and your benefits continue. The Ticket does not depend on how much you earn; it only requires that you are actively using it (working with your service provider and making progress toward work). If your earnings drop, you are still protected from a medical review as long as the Ticket is open.

Do I lose my Ticket if I take time off work?

Taking a short break does not automatically close your Ticket. However, if you stop working for an extended period and are no longer actively using your service provider's help, Social Security may consider the Ticket inactive and close it. Talk to your provider and Social Security if you need to pause work temporarily; they can help you keep the Ticket open if you plan to return.