Two Social Security work incentives can help you keep more money when you work while disabled: impairment-related work expenses (IRWEs) and a Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS). An IRWE lets you subtract the cost of things you need, because of your disability, in order to work - things like specialized transportation, attendant care, medication, or assistive technology - from the earnings Social Security counts. A PASS lets you set aside your own income and resources toward a specific, written work goal so that the set-aside money doesn't count against SSI's income and resource limits while you pursue it. Both exist to support work, not penalize it - but you generally have to ask for them and document them. Here's how each one works, what SSA wants to see, and where to get free help.
Impairment-related work expenses (IRWE): the basics
An IRWE is the cost of an item or service that you need, because of your disabling impairment, in order to work - and that you pay for out of your own pocket. Social Security subtracts documented IRWEs before doing one of two different things, depending on which benefit you receive:
SSDI: IRWEs are subtracted from your gross earnings before SSA compares what's left to the substantial gainful activity (SGA) line. This can keep your countable earnings under SGA even when your actual paycheck would otherwise put you over it - which can matter both when SSA is deciding an initial claim and later, after a trial work period, during the extended period of eligibility.
SSI: IRWEs are deducted as part of the calculation of your countable income, which can directly increase your monthly SSI payment for the same amount of work.
For 2026, the SGA line is $1,690 a month (or $2,830 a month if you're statutorily blind); SSA adjusts these amounts most years. The SSI federal benefit rate is $994 a month for an individual ($1,491 for an eligible couple), also adjusted most years - while the SSI resource limits are fixed by law at $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple and haven't changed since 1989. Confirm the current indexed figures on SSA's own pages - the SGA page at ssa.gov and SSA's SSI pages - when you're estimating whether an IRWE will make a difference for you.
What typically qualifies as an IRWE
SSA looks at whether the expense is connected to your impairment, needed for you to work, and paid by you. Categories that have qualified include:
Specialized transportation - a modified vehicle, structured driving services, or other transportation you need because ordinary public transit isn't usable for you.
Attendant care services you need to get ready for work or during your work day.
Medications, and treatment for their side effects, needed to control your impairment so that you can work.
Medical devices, assistive technology, and equipment - a wheelchair, a specialized computer setup, sensory aids, or tools adapted to your impairment.
Service animal costs, including purchase, training, food, and veterinary care.
Certain job coaching, counseling, or similar services not already paid for by vocational rehabilitation or another program.
Three conditions generally have to be met: you paid for it yourself (not reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, or your employer), the cost is reasonable - it reflects the standard charge for that item or service in your community - and you need the item or service because of your impairment in order to work. An accommodation your employer provides and pays for isn't your out-of-pocket expense, so it isn't an IRWE. But an expense can still count even if you also need the item outside of work: SSA's rules allow the deduction for assistance you need in order to work whether or not you also need it for normal daily activities.
How to claim an IRWE
Keep every receipt, paid invoice, or canceled check showing what you bought, what it cost, and that you paid it - not a family member, not an employer, not insurance.
Get supporting documentation from a treating source where you can, explaining why the item or service is necessary because of your specific impairment and how it relates to your ability to work.
Report the expense to Social Security as part of reporting your work activity. SSA asks about impairment-related expenses when you report earnings, and a claims representative or your local field office can tell you exactly what documentation they need in your situation.
Do it consistently, not once. IRWEs are evaluated month by month, so ongoing expenses need ongoing records.
If you are blind, ask SSA about blind work expenses (BWE) instead - for SSI, that deduction is broader than an IRWE and is not limited to impairment-related items.
Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS): the basics
A PASS is a written plan, approved by Social Security, for reaching a specific work goal - a particular job, an occupation, or a self-employment venture. Under an approved PASS, you set aside part of your own income and/or resources to pay for the things your plan calls for: training or tuition, tools and equipment, a vehicle you need for the work, or start-up costs for a small business. While the plan is in effect, the income and resources you've set aside for it are excluded from SSI's income and resource counting.
That exclusion is what makes a PASS useful: SSI has strict income and resource limits, so ordinarily, saving up for a significant work-related purchase could push you over a limit or reduce your payment. A PASS creates an approved, protected lane to save toward a specific goal without that happening.
A PASS isn't only for people already on SSI. It can also help someone who receives SSDI (or has other income) but whose countable income or resources are otherwise too high to qualify for any SSI payment - if an approved PASS excludes enough, it can open the door to SSI eligibility that wouldn't otherwise exist. The SSI federal benefit rate ($994 a month for an individual) is adjusted most years, but the SSI resource limits - $2,000 for an individual, $3,000 for a couple - are fixed by statute and haven't moved since 1989. Check the current indexed figures on SSA's SSI pages before assuming a PASS will or won't work for you.
What a PASS needs to include
An approved PASS is a specific, individualized plan, not a general intention to work someday. SSA generally expects:
A clear, feasible work goal - the specific job or type of self-employment you're aiming for.
The steps you'll take and how long each will take, with a realistic timeline.
An itemized list of the training, items, or services you need and what they cost, along with the income and/or resources you'll set aside to pay for them.
A way to keep the PASS money separate and identifiable (often its own bank account) so it can be tracked.
A business plan, if your goal is self-employment.
How other funding - such as vocational rehabilitation - fits in, since a PASS is meant to cover costs another program isn't already paying.
How to apply for a PASS
Complete Form SSA-545-BK ("Plan to Achieve Self-Support"), available free at ssa.gov/forms/ssa-545.html, describing your work goal, the steps and timeline, and your itemized costs.
Get help while you build it, if you can. SSA maintains a PASS Cadre of specialists who review plans, and a WIPA counselor through Ticket to Work can help you think the plan through. Getting input early can spare you from redoing paperwork.
Submit the plan to Social Security. A PASS Cadre member will contact you to discuss the plan and tell you whether changes are needed before it can be approved.
Follow the plan and keep records once it's approved. SSA reviews active plans periodically to confirm the set-aside funds are being used as described and that you're making progress toward the goal.
Update the plan if your circumstances or timeline genuinely change, rather than letting it quietly drift from what was approved.
Approval isn't automatic, and no one can promise it. What SSA is looking for is a realistic goal, a clear budget, and a plan you can actually carry out.
Why these incentives are underused
Both IRWEs and PASS plans are used far less often than they could be - and rarely because people don't need the help. More often it's because:
People don't know these incentives exist at all.
They assume any disability-related cost is simply theirs to absorb, with no way to get credit for it.
The paperwork feels intimidating, especially while managing a health condition and, often, a job at the same time.
Field offices don't always raise these incentives on their own - you frequently have to ask.
None of that means the process is out of reach. It means it's worth getting help to design it correctly the first time.
Get free help before you file the paperwork
Social Security's Ticket to Work program connects beneficiaries with Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) counselors at no cost, and SSA's PASS Cadre specialists review PASS plans. A WIPA counselor can look at your actual earnings, expenses, or work goal and explain what is likely to qualify before you spend time on forms that may need revising. You can find these resources through SSA's Ticket to Work site or by calling Social Security. Your state's protection and advocacy organization and your local legal aid office may also be able to help.
Reporting duties - don't let this slip
Report your work activity, earnings, and impairment-related expenses to Social Security as they happen, not only when you're asked. This is true whether or not you're claiming an IRWE or running a PASS. Unreported or late-reported work and income is one of the most common causes of disability overpayments, where SSA later determines it paid you too much and asks for the money back. If that happens, you generally have the right both to appeal (if you believe the overpayment or its amount is wrong) and to request a waiver (if the overpayment wasn't your fault and repaying it would be unfair or unaffordable) - and those are two separate requests.
Deadlines are short. If you disagree with an SSA determination - including one that denies or reduces an IRWE deduction, denies a PASS, or finds an overpayment - you generally have about 60 days from receiving the notice to appeal. Don't let a notice sit unopened. If you do miss the window, ask SSA about good cause for late filing rather than assuming it's over.
Beware "guaranteed approval" pitches and advance-fee scams
Anyone who charges you money upfront to "set up" your IRWE or PASS, or who guarantees your plan will be approved, is not operating within the legitimate system. The forms are free, and real help is available at no cost through SSA's Ticket to Work network, WIPA counselors, the PASS Cadre, and legal aid or protection-and-advocacy organizations in your state. Be equally wary of anyone who asks for your Social Security number or bank details out of the blue, or who offers to route your benefits through their account. Representatives who handle a disability claim before SSA are paid only after a favorable decision, only out of past-due benefits, and only in an amount SSA itself approves - never an upfront fee for paperwork like this.
One more thing worth saying plainly: report your work and your expenses honestly. Claiming an expense you didn't pay, or concealing work you actually did, isn't a shortcut - it's fraud, and it can cost you your benefits and more. These work incentives exist precisely so that honest, well-documented work doesn't cost you your safety net.
This article is general information about Social Security work incentives. It is not legal advice and not medical advice, and it does not create an attorney-client or representative relationship. For 2026, SGA is $1,690 a month ($2,830 if you're statutorily blind) and the SSI federal benefit rate is $994 a month for an individual ($1,491 for a couple); these are adjusted most years. The SSI resource limits ($2,000 individual / $3,000 couple) are fixed by statute and unchanged since 1989. Confirm current amounts, rules, and forms at ssa.gov before making work or financial decisions.
$2,000in countable resources(set by statute — does not change with the COLA)
SSI countable resource limit, couple
$3,000in countable resources(set by statute — does not change with the COLA)
Figures shown are for 2026. Social Security re-indexes most of these each January with the cost-of-living adjustment (the 2026 COLA was 2.8%); the amounts marked as set by statute do not change. Always confirm the current figure at the official source: ssa.gov · ssa.gov · ssa.gov.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as an impairment-related work expense?
Generally, it's an item or service you need because of your disabling impairment, that you pay for yourself, and that you need in order to work. Common examples include specialized transportation when regular public transit isn't usable for you, attendant care you need before or during your work day, certain medications and treatment for their side effects, medical devices and assistive technology, service animal costs, and some job coaching or counseling not already paid for by vocational rehabilitation. SSA's rules require that you pay the cost yourself (not reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, or an employer) and that the cost is reasonable - meaning it reflects the standard charge for that item or service in your community. Importantly, an expense can still count even if you also need the item or service for ordinary daily activities outside of work, as long as you need it in order to work.
Does an IRWE help with SSDI, SSI, or both?
Both, but in different ways. For SSDI, Social Security subtracts documented IRWEs from your gross earnings before comparing what's left to the substantial gainful activity (SGA) line - so an IRWE can keep your countable earnings under SGA even when your paycheck alone would be over it. For SSI, IRWEs are deducted as part of the calculation of your countable income, which can mean a higher SSI payment for the same amount of work. (Blind SSI recipients have a separate, broader deduction called blind work expenses; ask SSA which one applies to you.)
Who can use a PASS, and does it only help with SSI?
A PASS is an SSI work incentive, but it isn't only for people already receiving SSI. It can also be used by someone who currently receives SSDI (or has other income) but whose countable income or resources are otherwise too high to qualify for SSI - if an approved PASS excludes enough income or resources, it can open the door to an SSI payment that wouldn't otherwise exist. The income and resources set aside under an approved PASS are excluded from SSI's income and resource tests for as long as the plan is approved and you're following it.
What paperwork does Social Security want for each one?
For IRWEs, keep receipts, paid invoices, or canceled checks showing what you bought, what it cost, and that you paid for it yourself, plus documentation (often from a treating source) tying the item or service to your impairment and your ability to work. Report the expenses to SSA when you report your work activity. For a PASS, you complete Form SSA-545-BK, available free at ssa.gov, describing your specific work goal, the steps and timeline to reach it, an itemized list of what you'll spend the set-aside money on, and how you'll keep the funds separate and tracked. If your goal is self-employment, SSA also expects a business plan. A member of SSA's PASS Cadre reviews the plan, contacts you about any changes needed, and reviews the plan periodically after approval.
Why are these work incentives so underused?
Often because people simply don't know they exist, assume disability-related costs are theirs alone to absorb, or find the paperwork intimidating while managing a health condition and a job at the same time. Field offices don't always raise these incentives on their own, so you frequently have to ask. A free Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) counselor, reached through SSA's Ticket to Work program, can review your actual expenses or work goal with you and explain what is likely to qualify before you tackle the forms alone.
This article is general legal information, not legal advice, and may not reflect the most current law or the law in your jurisdiction. Laws vary by state and change over time. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney.
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