Substantial Gainful Activity

• One of the requirements you must meet to establish eligibility for SSI is to demonstrate the inability to sustain "substantial gainful activity." Substantial gainful activity is work that is considered productive and for which you are paid. Either a full-time or a part-time job would be considered substantial gainful activity if you earned an average of $1000 per month as of the publication date. However, incidental income such as wages from occasional jobs would not be considered "substantial gainful activity" and would not have an adverse effect on your eligibility for SSI.
  
  

Federal Benefit Rate

• Once you qualify for SSI, the Social Security Administration office calculates how much you would be eligible to receive in monthly benefits. The exact amount varies; if you are working, your check may be reduced. However, the maximum monthly benefit you can receive is called the federal benefit rate, a fixed amount that varies every year. As of 2011, the federal benefit rate for individuals was $674; for couples the amount was $1,011. In some years, the federal benefit rate is supplemented by a cost-of-living adjustment, but there has been no cost of living adjustment added since 2010.
  
  

Calculating Your Income

• In calculating your SSI benefits, the Social Security Administration subtracts the first $20 of nearly all forms of income, including wages. If you are working, the Social Security Administration office deducts the first $65 of your earnings and half of all your remaining earnings. None of these funds is considered income in calculating your SSI benefits. What is left is called countable income. The Social Security Administration deducts your countable income from the federal benefit rate, and pays you the difference in SSI benefits. However, if your countable income is greater than the federal benefit rate, you do not qualify for SSI.
  
  

Work Incentives

• If you work, you may be able to deduct necessary out-of-pocket expenses that allow you to work from your earnings to be considered when the Social Security office determines whether you are engaged in substantial gainful activity. For instance, if you must drive to work, or for your job, you may deduct the cost of modifying your car with hand controls. In addition, once you have been approved, you may make deductions for any amount that you put aside toward developing what the Social Security Administration activities such as job-related training.