Social Security Disability (SSD) is a federal government program that pays you benefits if you have physical or mental health problems that prevent you from working for at least 12 consecutive months.  

When your application for SSD is accepted, you receive the monthly Social Security benefit you would normally receive at retirement age. In effect, you get your Social Security retirement check early because you can no longer work.  

The SSD program has both medical and non-medical requirements. The basic medical requirement is proof of an inability to work due to a documented physical or mental health problem. The basic non-medical requirement is that you have worked and paid enough money into the Social Security system to be both “fully insured” and “currently insured.” 

Most people meet the “fully insured” requirement after working and paying Social Security taxes for 10 years. Most people meet the “currently insured” requirement if they have worked and paid Social Security taxes for at least 5 of the 10 years prior to the date they became unable to work.