Eligibility
Eligibility for Disability Insurance (DI)
DI benefits can be paid only after you meet all of the following requirements:
- You must be unable to do your regular or customary work for at least eight consecutive days.
- You must be employed or actively looking for work at the time you become disabled.
- You must have lost wages because of your disability or, if unemployed, have been actively looking for work.
- You must have earned at least $300 from which SDI deductions were withheld during a previous period.
- You must be under the care and treatment of a licensed doctor or accredited religious practitioner during the first eight days of your disability. (The beginning date of a claim can be adjusted to meet this requirement.) You must remain under care and treatment to continue receiving benefits.
- You must complete and mail a claim form within 49 days of the date you became disabled or you may lose benefits.
- Your doctor must complete the medical certification of your disability. A licensed midwife, nurse-midwife, or nurse practitioner may complete the medical certification for disabilities related to normal pregnancy or childbirth. (If you are under the care of a religious practitioner, request a “Practitioner's Certificate,” DE 2502, from the SDI office. Certification by a religious practitioner is acceptable only if the practitioner has been accredited by Employment Development Department.)
An independent medical examination to determine your initial or continuing eligibility may be required.
Ineligibility - Disability Insurance (DI)
You may apply for benefits even if you are not sure you are eligible. If you are found to be ineligible for all or part of a period claimed, you will be notified of the ineligible period and the reason. You may not be eligible for SDI benefits if:
- You are not suffering a loss of wages
- You are claiming or receiving Unemployment Insurance or Paid Family Leave benefits.
- You became disabled while committing a crime resulting in a felony conviction.
- You are in jail, prison, recovery home, or any other place because you were convicted of a crime
- You are receiving Workers' Compensation benefits at a weekly rate equal to or greater than the DI rate.
- You fail to have an independent medical examination when requested to do so.
