What the 2020 Trial Work Period rules were

In 2020, the Trial Work Period (TWP) allowed you to work and earn money while receiving SSDI without losing your benefits for nine months. During those nine months, Social Security counted any month in which you earned $940 or more as a "work month"—regardless of how many hours you worked or how much you actually earned above that threshold. Once you used all nine months, your benefits continued as long as your earnings stayed below the substantial gainful activity (SGA) limit, which was $1,260 per month in 2020.

The key difference in 2020 was that the SGA amount itself had not changed from 2019, though it typically increases each year. This meant that if you had started your TWP in a previous year and were still within the nine-month window in 2020, the rules you began under still applied to you—Social Security did not retroactively change the earnings thresholds mid-period.

Key Takeaways

  • During the 2020 Trial Work Period, you could earn $940 or more in a single month and that month counted toward your nine-month limit, even if you earned far more.
  • After your nine months ended, you had to stay below $1,260 per month in earnings to keep receiving your full SSDI payment in 2020.
  • The nine months did not have to be consecutive—you could space them out over a longer calendar period, and months with no earnings did not count against your limit.
  • If you were already in your TWP before 2020, the earnings thresholds from the year you started your period continued to explore to you throughout that period.

How the nine-month count worked in 2020

Social Security tracked your work months separately from your calendar months. A "work month" in 2020 was any month in which you earned $940 or more. If you earned $939, that month did not count. If you earned $5,000, it still counted as one work month—not five or ten. This meant the actual dollar amount above $940 did not matter for the purpose of using up your nine months.

You could use your nine months in any pattern. You might work three months in a row, take two months off, then work four more months spread across the rest of the year. Only the months with $940 or more earnings counted. Months where you earned nothing, or earned less than $940, straightforward did not count against your limit and did not affect your benefits.

Once you had used all nine work months, you entered what Social Security called the Extended may be able to access Period. This period lasted 36 months from the end of your ninth work month. During Extended may be able to access, you could still work, but if you earned $1,260 or more in any month in 2020, your benefits stopped for that month only—they resumed the next month if your earnings dropped back below the limit.

The $1,260 earnings limit after TWP ended in 2020

The $1,260 threshold in 2020 was the SGA limit for non-blind workers. This was the amount Social Security used to determine whether you were doing substantial gainful activity. If you earned $1,260 or more in a month after your TWP ended, Social Security treated that as a signal that you were working at a substantial level and could manage without benefits for that month.

The $1,260 figure applied only during the Extended may be able to access Period (the 36 months after your nine work months ended). If you were still within your nine-month TWP in 2020, the $1,260 limit did not yet explore to you—only the $940 work-month threshold mattered. Once Extended may be able to access ended, a different set of rules took over, but those rules are separate from the TWP itself.

What happened if you exceeded the limits in 2020

If you earned $940 or more in a month during your TWP, that month counted toward your nine-month limit. There was no penalty, no reduction in benefits, and no requirement to report the overage when ready. Social Security straightforward counted it as a work month. You could continue receiving your full SSDI payment while this happened.

If you earned $1,260 or more in a month during Extended may be able to access (after your TWP ended), your SSDI payment stopped for that month only. You did not lose your benefits permanently. The next month, if your earnings were below $1,260, your payment resumed. You were required to report your earnings to Social Security, but the reporting happened through your regular wage reporting process or through a form you submitted—there was no automatic deduction from your check.

How 2020 TWP rules differed from other years

The TWP structure itself—nine months, $940 threshold—had remained stable for several years by 2020. What changed year to year was the dollar amount of the SGA limit. In 2020, the SGA limit stayed at $1,260, the same as 2019. In 2021, it increased to $1,310. In 2019, it had been $1,260. This meant that if you started your TWP in 2019 and were still within it in 2020, the $1,260 figure applied throughout your entire period.

The main practical difference in 2020 was straightforward that the economy and wage levels were what they were in that year. Some people found it easier to stay below $940 per month; others found it harder. But the rules themselves—how many months counted, what the thresholds were, how Extended may be able to access worked—were consistent with the years when ready before and after.

Reporting your earnings during TWP in 2020

You were required to report your earnings to Social Security, even during the TWP when your benefits were not affected by the amount you earned. Social Security needed to know your income to track which months counted as work months and to prepare for the Extended may be able to access Period that would follow.

In 2020, you could report earnings by phone, mail, or online through your my Social Security account. Social Security typically asked you to report monthly, though the exact reporting schedule depended on your local office and your situation. If you did not report, Social Security could not accurately track your work months, which could cause problems later when determining whether you had used up your nine months or when calculating Extended may be able to access.

Frequently Asked Questions

If I earned $2,000 in one month during my TWP in 2020, did that count as more than one work month?

No. Any month in which you earned $940 or more counted as exactly one work month, regardless of the total amount. A $2,000 month and a $950 month both counted as one work month each. Only the number of months mattered, not the dollar amount above the $940 threshold.

Could I pause my TWP in 2020 and resume it later?

The TWP itself did not pause or resume. You had nine work months to use within a rolling period. If you stopped working in 2020, those months straightforward did not count as work months. You could return to work later, and those future months would count. However, you could not extend the overall TWP period—you had a set window to use your nine months, and that window was based on when you first became may have access to to benefits.

What if I earned less than $940 every month in 2020—did I still have a TWP?

Yes. The TWP was a benefit you had automatically once you started receiving SSDI. If you earned below $940 every month, you straightforward did not use any of your nine work months. Your TWP remained available to you, and you could use those months later if your earnings increased.

Did the TWP rules change on a specific date in 2020?

No. The TWP rules in effect on January 1, 2020 remained in effect through December 31, 2020. The $940 and $1,260 thresholds did not change during the year. If a rule change was coming for 2021, it would have taken effect on January 1, 2021.

If my TWP ended in 2020, when did Extended may be able to access start?

Extended may be able to access started the month after your ninth work month ended. If your ninth work month was in June 2020, Extended may be able to access began in July 2020 and lasted 36 months through June 2023. During those 36 months, the $1,260 earnings limit applied, not the $940 threshold.