If you need to know how to apply for Social Security Disability in North Carolina, read on. The Bishop Law Firm has represented disability clients in Raleigh and the surrounding areas of NC since 2009.
We do not get paid unless you win! We also offer free case reviews by phone, (919) 615-3095, or you can start your free case review online now.
Types of Social Security Disability Benefits
Before you can apply for disability benefits, you need to know the types of benefits that you may be eligible for.
Please note that SSA does not offer partial, percentage-based, or short-term disability benefits.
Your disability must have lasted or be expected to last 12 months or result in death.
SSA (in general) offers two types of disability benefits: Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Social Security Disability Insurance
SSDI is based on the credits from the work you have done in your life. When we work, we pay FICA taxes, which translate to work credits.
Your work credits (or lack thereof) will determine your eligibility for SSDI.
When you apply, the SSA local field office will be able to see your work history and work credits.
In general, you must have worked 5 out of the last 10 years to be eligible for SSDI.
The Social Security representative will inform you if you are eligible to apply for SSDI.
SSDI benefits (or a variation of it) can be paid to disabled workers, the disabled spouses of deceased workers, disabled surviving divorced spouses, and adult disabled children.
Also watch: Who can apply for SSDI/SSI?
Supplemental Security Income
SSI is a need-based program. SSI is for children and adults with limited resources and limited income who have not worked full-time for 5 of the last 10 years.
The Supplemental Security Income application process requires you to disclose financial information to determine eligibility for SSI payments.
To be eligible for SSI, an adult must not have more than $2,000 in countable resources. A married couple must not have more than $3,000 in countable resources.
Countable resources include cash, bank accounts, land, life insurance, personal property, vehicles, and deemed resources.
Luckily, some exceptions do not count as resources to SSA: the home you live in, one vehicle, personal items in your home, insurance policies up to $1500, and burial plots, etc.
Deemed resources mean that SSA will treat another person's income as yours.
Your spouse's income (if you live in the same home) and a parent's income (for a child under 18) can disqualify a claimant from receiving SSI disability benefits.
Even people who are not legally married but hold themselves out to the community as a married couple can be subject to deeming rules.
SSA checks the claimant's financial qualifications when they initially apply and again if they are found disabled.
If your resources are more than what the Social Security Administration allows, you will not be permitted to file for or receive SSI benefits.
It is undoubtedly better to be denied initially due to resources than to go all the way through the disability process, be found disabled, and then be told that you are not eligible due to resources.
Also watch: Who can apply for SSDI/SSI?
How to apply for disability in NC?
The first hurdle in applying for disability in North Carolina is that you must not be working and earning more $1,690 (2026) a month (substantial gainful activity).
The next step is to be eligible for one of SSA's disability benefits: SSDI (work credits required) or SSI (need-based), as discussed above.
The first way to apply for disability in North Carolina is to call your local Social Security Office and schedule an appointment to file an initial claim by phone or in person (in-person appointments are rare these days).
Phone appointments are the method that most of my clients use. You will need this information to apply for disability benefits.
The Social Security Administration also has an online application for SSDI and SSI.
The online application is lengthy, but luckily, you can save your work and finish in more than one sitting. Please don't forget to print or write down your re-entry number if you choose to complete it later!
After you apply for benefits online, the SSA will reach out to you for supporting documents.
SSA may request birth certificates, workers' compensation settlements, certain medical records, proof of current income, or any other documentation needed to process your application.
You must submit the requested documents to SSA for your claim to proceed.
If SSA determines that you are eligible to apply for SSDI or SSI, your case starts the disability process.
When you apply for disability benefits, you should inform Social Security about all impairments that your medical provider has told you of, if you served in the military, and about your living/financial situation. SSA offers expedited processing for those in dire need, Veterans, and individuals with conditions on the Compassionate Allowances List.
What happens after I apply for Social Security Disability benefits in North Carolina?
After you apply for disability benefits and turn in all required documents, the local Social Security office will send your case to Disability Determination Services (DDS).
DDS denies roughly 70% of the disability claims that they see.
At DDS, an examiner will be assigned to your file. They will order medical evidence from your health providers and send you forms to complete for your file.
If they do not have enough medical evidence to decide on your claim, they may send you to a consultative examination.
Read more at A Look Inside NC Disability Determination Services.
What are the five steps to getting approved for disability?
DDS will use SSA’s Five Step Sequential Evaluation to determine if you are disabled:
- Step 1 – Are You Working? The Social Security Administration defines work as “Substantial Gainful Activity” (SGA). SGA is roughly defined as work from earnings that average more than $1,690 (2026) a month. If you are making that amount, you generally will not qualify for disability.
- Step 2 – Is Your Condition “Severe”? Severity is key to what qualifies as a disability. Severe is defined by the Social Security Administration as: your condition must interfere with basic work-related activities for your claim to be considered.
- Step 3 – Is Your Condition on the List of Disabling Conditions? The Listings are very hard to meet in most cases and are not always interpreted as a common reading would suggest. If you meet a listing, you are gravely ill. The listings are found here.
- Step 4 – Can You Do the Work You Did Previously? The Social Security Administration will look at your past work and determine if it was sedentary, light, medium, or heavy. They will also evaluate the skill level: unskilled, semi-skilled, and skilled. For instance, an attorney would be sedentary skilled work. The Dictionary of Occupational Titles is found here.
- Step 5 – Can You Do Any Other Type of Work? If the Social Security Administration finds that you cannot do what you used to do, they then look to see if you can do anything else. Step 5 is where the “grids” come into play. The grids are the Medical-Vocational Guidelines. The grids are only for exertional impairments. The grids do not consider non-exertional impairments. If you are found to be capable of any other work, you will be found not disabled. Read The Grids and Your Social Security Disability Case.
Frequently asked questions
- What qualifies you for disability in North Carolina? You must be eligible for a type of benefit that SSA offers (SSDI or SSI), and your medical condition(s) must severely affect your ability to work; SSA can find you disabled, no matter the name of your disease. Severity is key, not the disease's name. SSA maintains a Listing of Impairments, but it is not an all-inclusive list.
- What disqualifies you from receiving disability? If you are working and making over $1,690 (non-blind) a month, you are generally disqualified from receiving Social Security Disability. Also, you must have a work history or financial need that entitles you to one of SSA's disability benefits. In addition, you can not be found disabled if drug or alcohol abuse is your only impairment.
- What illness automatically qualifies for disability? There are no illnesses that can automatically qualify you for disability without evidence. Medical evidence is required to prove the severity of your condition. However, illnesses on the Compassionate Allowance List qualify for expedited processing by SSA.
The Bishop Law Firm represents Social Security Disability clients in Raleigh, Durham, Fayetteville, Cary, Rocky Mount, Wilson, Smithfield, Louisburg, Chapel Hill, Roanoke Rapids, Winston Salem, Garner, Greensboro, Greenville, and surrounding areas in North Carolina. Call us today for a free case review, (919) 615-3095, or start online now!
Also read North Carolina Social Security Disability Attorney.
