§ 404.1592f. How do we determine reinstated benefits?

(a) If you meet the requirements for reinstatement under § 404.1592c(a), we will then consider in which month to reinstate your entitlement. We will reinstate your entitlement with the earliest month, in the 12-month period that ends with the month before you filed your request for reinstatement, that you would have met all of the requirements under § 404.1592c(a) if you had filed your request for reinstatement in that month. Otherwise, you will be entitled to reinstated benefits beginning with the month in which you filed your request for such benefits if you did not perform substantial gainful activity in that month. If you performed substantial gainful activity in the month of filing, but are no longer able to perform substantial gainful activity, we will reinstate your benefits with the month after the month you filed your request for reinstatement. We cannot reinstate your entitlement for any month prior to January 2001.

(b) When your entitlement is reinstated, you are also entitled to Medicare benefits under the provisions of 42 CFR part 406.

(c) We will compute your reinstated benefit amount and determine benefits payable under the applicable paragraphs of §§ 404.201 through 404.480 with certain exceptions—

(1) We will reduce your reinstated benefit due in a month by the amount of the provisional benefit we already paid you for that month. If your provisional benefit paid for a month exceeds the reinstated benefit, we will treat the difference as an overpayment under §§ 404.501 through 404.527.

(2) If you are reinstated on your own earnings record, we will compute your primary insurance amount with the same date of onset we used in your most recent period of disability on your earnings record.

(d) We will not pay you reinstated benefits for any months of substantial gainful activity during your initial reinstatement period. During the initial reinstatement period, the trial work period provisions of § 404.1592 and the reentitlement period provisions of § 404.1592a do not apply. The initial reinstatement period begins with the month your reinstated benefits begin under paragraph (a) of this section and ends when you have had 24 payable months of reinstated benefits. We consider you to have a payable month for the purposes of this paragraph when you do not do substantial gainful activity in that month and when the non-payment provisions in subpart E of part 404 also do not apply. If the amount of the provisional benefit already paid you for a month equals or exceeds the amount of the reinstated benefit payable for that month so that no additional payment is due, we will consider that month a payable month. When we determine if you have done substantial gainful activity in a month during the initial reinstatement period, we will consider only your work in, or earnings for, that month. We will not apply the unsuccessful work attempt provisions of §§ 404.1574(c) and 404.1575(d) or the averaging of earnings provisions in § 404.1574a.

(e) After you complete the 24-month initial reinstatement period as indicated in paragraph (d) of this section, your subsequent work will be evaluated under the trial work provisions in § 404.1592 and then the reentitlement period in § 404.1592a.

(f) Your entitlement to reinstated benefits ends with the month before the earliest of the following months—

(1) The month an applicable terminating event in § 404.301 through 404.389 occurs;

(2) The month in which you reach retirement age;

(3) The third month following the month in which your disability ceases; or

(4) The month in which you die.

(g) Determinations we make under §§ 404.1592f are initial determinations under § 404.902 and subject to review under subpart J of part 404.

(h) If we determine you are not entitled to reinstated benefits we will consider your request filed under § 404.1592c(a) your intent to claim benefits under § 404.630.

[70 FR 57142, Sept. 30, 2005, as amended at 82 FR 7648, Jan. 21, 2017]