Trial Work Period 2026: Rules, Thresholds, and What Counts

The Trial Work Period lets people receiving SSDI or DAC (Disabled Adult Child) benefits test their ability to work without immediately losing disability payments. In 2026, any month where gross earnings exceed $1,210 counts as a Trial Work Period month. You get 9 TWP months within a rolling 60-month window before the SSA evaluates whether you're performing Substantial Gainful Activity.

How the Trial Work Period Works

During the TWP, you keep your full SSDI or DAC benefit regardless of how much you earn. The SSA doesn't reduce your check. The purpose is to let you try working — part-time, full-time, whatever — and see whether sustained employment is feasible, without financial risk.

The 9 months don't have to be consecutive. If you work one month, take three months off, then work another month, each working month above the $1,210 threshold counts toward your 9. The SSA tracks this within a rolling 60-month (5-year) window.

The month after the 9th TWP month, the SSA enters what it calls the Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE) — a 36-month window during which benefits continue for any month your earnings are below SGA ($1,690/month for non-blind individuals in 2026). If your earnings exceed SGA during the EPE, benefits are generally suspended for that month; the first SGA occurrence has a three-month grace period, and benefits can restart without a new application if earnings drop below SGA again during the 36-month re-entitlement period.

TWP vs. SSI Work Incentives

The Trial Work Period applies to Title II benefits only — SSDI, DAC, and disabled widow/widower benefits. It does not apply to SSI.

SSI has its own work incentive structure:

• Earned income exclusion: SSI excludes the first $65 of earned income plus any unused portion of the $20 general income exclusion, then excludes half of the remainder
• Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE): students under 22 can exclude up to $2,410/month (2026), up to $9,730 annually
• Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE): costs directly related to the disability and working (transportation modifications, job coaching fees, medical devices needed for work) are deducted from countable earnings

If your adult child receives both SSI and SSDI (which can happen when SSDI is below the SSI Federal Benefit Rate), both sets of rules apply simultaneously. The TWP governs the SSDI portion while the SSI earned income rules govern the SSI supplement.

What Counts as a TWP Month

The $1,210 threshold is based on gross earnings — before taxes, deductions, or any exclusions. If your adult child earns $1,211 in any month, that month counts toward the 9, even if the job only lasted a few days that month.

Self-employment has a different test: a TWP month is triggered if net self-employment earnings exceed $1,210 or if the individual works more than 80 hours in the month, whichever comes first.

Planning Around the TWP

For families managing the transition to adult benefits in Colorado, the Trial Work Period is relevant when a young adult on DAC benefits wants to try working. The 9-month cushion provides genuine breathing room — nearly a full year of employment experimentation without benefit risk.

The strategic consideration: once the TWP is exhausted, earnings above SGA ($1,690/month) can suspend benefits during the EPE, subject to the three-month grace period for the first SGA occurrence. After the EPE, earnings above SGA can end the benefit. If sustained employment at that level is realistic, the WAwD Medicaid Buy-In preserves healthcare coverage regardless of income up to 450% FPL. If employment is intermittent or uncertain, keeping earnings below SGA after the TWP preserves the benefit check.

The Colorado SSI at 18 & Adult Disability Benefits Guide maps the TWP alongside Colorado's state-specific work incentives — SEIE calculations, DVR coordination, and the earnings tracking worksheets you need to stay on the right side of the thresholds.

See more Colorado guides →