I hear this one with some frequency. I am meeting with a client and they tell me that someone at Social Security told them that if they want to appeal, they have to wait sixty days before starting a new claim / filing a new application.

That’s just not true.

You do not have to wait any length of time after a denial before starting a new claim. You can start a new application the same day as you receive the denial.

I think think the confusion comes from the 60 day (actually 60 + 5 day) time period you have typically have to file an appeal. That is the deadline by which you have to get your appeal submitted to Social Security. But the appeal deadline does not have to expire before you can start a new claim.

Whether starting a new application is a better idea than appealing the denial is completely separate issue. But, that is something addressed in other posts.

MYTH:

REALITY: If you are denied (on an initial claim), you may be able to file a Request for Reconsideration (appeal 1) and if that is denied, a Request for Hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (appeal 2).

I agree that often your best chance to win is in front of an Administrative Law Judge. So there is some truth in the myth: often you have to be denied twice (at the initial application and at the reconsideration phase) before you have your best chance of being found disabled.

BUT, rather than APPEALING the denial, people often interpret the myth to mean they have to RE-APPLY two or three times in order to win. Re-applying may be the worst thing you can do.

If you re-apply, your case may be reviewed by the same technicians who reviewed your case initially. If the technician denied your case once, he or she is likely to deny your case again. Even if a new technician reviews your case, in my opinion, there seems to be a kind of inertia with Social Security. If a case was denied before, it is hard to get Social Security to change course and approve a case by filing a new claim.

However, if you APPEAL a case. The case gets taken out of the local Social Security office and is transfered to the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR for short), which is the appeals office. Fresh eyes review the case; not just technicians but staff attorneys and judges. A case often has its best chance in front of a Judge.

So, do not be afraid to appeal! It may be just what your case needs.

photo credit: striatic