Past Relevant Work Change

 Posted on August 09, 2024 in Social Security Disability

Social Security has made important changes to the rules regarding past relevant work for disability determinations, effective June 22, 2024:

1. Shorter Evaluation Period: The period considered for past relevant work (PRW) has been reduced from 15 years to 5 years. Now, only the jobs you held in the last five years before your disability application will be evaluated (SSA). Changes To Past Relevant Work and Disability Determinations | SSA​​
2. Duration of Work: Work is no longer considered relevant if it lasted fewer than 30 calendar days. Short work attempts that do not provide substantial work experience​ will not be counted against you. SSR 24-2p (ssa.gov)​.
3. Simplified Process:Social Security has updated its work history report forms based on the above to make it easier to provide job information.

These updates are designed to simplify and speed up the disability evaluation and determination process. It is easier for applicants to provide accurate information, which should lead to a higher likelihood of disability approvals.