To qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA), your application must go through a sequential review process. Our attorneys can explain each step in detail and what must be met to get the benefits you need.
SSI sequential reviews are a five-stage process where applicants’ financial status, disability, and work history are analyzed to determine eligibility. First, the SSA must determine if your earnings are low enough to meet the Substantial Gainful Activity limits, followed by assessing the severity of your mental or physical impairment. If those steps are successfully completed, the SSA will see if your impairment matches one on their list of disabilities. Next, they will determine if you can work based on your prior employment history or whether other work can meet the restrictions and limitations, considering the impairment.
For a free, confidential case review with our Arkansas disability lawyers, call (479) 316-0438.
What are the Steps to an SSI Sequential Review in Arkansas?
When someone is disabled and needs financial support, the SSA conducts an SSI sequential review, which is a five-step procedure to determine an individual’s eligibility for SSI benefits under 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520. Each step assesses a distinct aspect of a person’s financial status, medical condition, and relevant work history. The process moves forward through the steps only as needed until a final decision on eligibility can be reached. If someone is deemed ineligible at any step, the review stops at that point, and no further steps are completed.
This process flows from the SSA’s definition of a disability, which our experienced Arkansas disability lawyers can help determine if you meet and gather the relevant records to submit with your application. According to § 404.1505, a person has a disability if any medically determined mental or physical impairment is expected to last for at least a year or result in death and is severe enough that it prevents them from performing past relevant work or any other substantial gainful work in the national economy. The following will explain how the SSA makes these determinations:
Step One: Determining Substantial Gainful Activity
First, the SSA considers an individual’s work activity, if any, also known as Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). The SGA is a set income that a person can earn in a month and still qualify for benefits, which typically increases each year. In 2025, the monthly SGA for blind applicants is $2,700, and $1,620 for non-blind individuals.
If you are working and your average monthly income is over this limit, the SSA will find you not disabled, and the review will end. The process will move to step two if you are not working or your monthly income is below the SGA.
Step Two: Determining the Medical Severity of the Applicant’s Impairment
The second step will assess the severity of your impairment. An applicant must have a medically determined mental or physical condition or a combination of conditions that is both severe and meets the duration requirement.
To meet the duration requirement under § 404.1509, the impairment must last or have lasted for at least 12 consecutive months or expected to result in the applicant’s death.
An impairment is severe if it interferes with a person’s ability to perform “basic work activities.” A physical impairment is severe if it prevents someone from walking, standing, carrying, lifting, pulling, pushing, or performing other activities defined in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles. A mental impairment is severe if the person cannot understand or carry out simple instructions, make work-related decisions, adjust to changes in the work setting, or respond accordingly to supervisors and work situations.
Step Three: Meeting or Equaling the Severity of an SSA Listing
If you meet the qualifications above, the SSA will then assess whether your condition matches an impairment in its official listing. The SSA considers the conditions on its listing to be so severe that an individual can be deemed disabled if their impairment meets a definition or its severity is equal to one. However, the duration requirement must still be met.
Assessing Residual Functional Capacity
After meeting step three and before moving to step four, the SSA will determine your residual functional capacity (RFC), which represents your total ability to sustain physical and mental work-related activities during a typical five-day workweek. The SSA will evaluate the physical demands of working under your condition, as well as the mental demands. The SSA uses the RFC to determine your ability to work under steps four and five.
Step Four: Determining Whether an Applicant Can Perform Past Relevant Work
Next, the SSA will assess relevant past work you have done and compare it with your RFC, as per § 404.1560. Past relevant work must meet SGA minimums, have been done within the past 15 years, and have lasted long enough that you learned how to do it. If your RFC does not prevent you from performing past types of work despite your condition’s restrictions and limitations, you will not be considered disabled.
The SSA does not take into account your education, age, or employability at this stage. However, the burden of proof is on you to show that your impairment prevents you from performing past relevant work. Our lawyers can help by submitting medical records and expert reports detailing the impact of your impairment.
Step Five: Determining Whether an Applicant Can Adjust to Other Work
Suppose you cannot perform any past work. In that case, the SSA will evaluate whether your RFC and vocational factors like age, work experience, and education prevent you from adjusting to other work. However, any other jobs you can adapt to must be present in substantial quantities in the national economy, either in your local area or across multiple regions in the country. Fortunately, the burden of proof to show this is on the SSA. If you cannot adjust to other work, the SSA will find you disabled and entitled to SSI benefits.
Call Our Disability Attorneys in Arkansas Today for Help Preparing Your Application
Contact us at (479) 316-0438 for a free case review with our Arkansas disability attorneys.