Applying for Disability
How to file and give your claim its best shot: the three ways to apply, the medical evidence that decides claims, the five-step evaluation Social Security uses, the function report and consultative exam, your doctor’s role, how long it takes, and applying for a child.
All Applying for Disability guides
- The Five-Step Sequential Evaluation: How SSA Decides
SSA decides every disability claim through five set questions. Here's what each step asks and where claims are typically won or lost.
- What Medical Evidence You Need for a Disability Claim
Medical evidence is the heart of an SSA disability claim. Learn what records matter, why gaps in care hurt, and how opinions are weighed.
- How to Apply for Social Security Disability
Step-by-step guide to applying for SSDI and SSI: how to file, what to gather, and what happens after you submit your claim.
- How Long Does a Disability Decision Take?
Realistic SSDI/SSI timelines: initial decisions, appeals, and hearings can take months to over a year, plus ways to check status or speed things up.
- The Adult Function Report and Your Daily Activities
How the SSA Adult Function Report (SSA-3373) works and how to answer it honestly, completely, and consistently with your medical record.
- Applying for SSI for a Child With Disabilities
How SSI works for disabled children: the child disability standard, parental income "deeming," evidence, and the age-18 review.
- Your Doctor's Role and Medical Source Statements
How a treating provider's function-based medical source statement can strengthen an SSDI/SSI claim, and why supportability and consistency matter.
- How to Check Your Disability Claim Status
How to track a pending SSDI/SSI claim online, by phone, or via DDS, submit new evidence, and what to do if it's taking too long.
- The Consultative Exam: What to Expect
What SSA's consultative exam is, why it's scheduled, what to bring, and why one short visit isn't the final word on your disability claim.