Send a due process letter in a proposed FTC cessation cases. As in all due process actions, allow 15 days for the beneficiary to respond (i.e., 10 days plus 5 days mail time) before processing the adverse action.

Send a due process letter to the beneficiary at the last known address. Provide 15 days for the beneficiary to respond. If the due process letter is undeliverable and you cannot contact the beneficiary at the last recorded telephone number, process the case following instructions in DI 13015.005.

If the beneficiary does not request in writing to have their benefits ceased, provide due process before taking any action to stop benefits.

If a beneficiary reports that, they are no longer disabled due to work activity or medical recovery and requests to have benefits ceased:

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  obtain a signed statement or document the request to suspend benefits from the beneficiary or representative payee that states they are no longer disabled, and is requesting a cessation of benefits. (See DI 13010.160C.1) Do not provide additional due process before ceasing benefits; and

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  continue to develop the issues and make a continuing disability review (CDR) determination following the instructions, FO Responsibilities in a Work CDR DI 13010.025.

Do not send a written due process notification when there is confirmation of the beneficiary’s death (see, Processing Reports of Death GN 02602.050).

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  generates the appropriate due process notice;

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  sends the notice to the Online Retrieval System (ORS); and

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  generates a “DUEPROCESS” issue on the development worksheet (DW01) screen. The due process issue remains unresolved until you receipt the date you close the issue on the DW01 screen.

Prepare the due process notice in the Document Processing System (DPS) with personalized information regarding the cessation and individual case situation. Use the template titled “SGA EPE Due Process,” located in the post-entitlement category.

Due process notification requirements:

1. 1. 

   Inform the beneficiary that based on the evidence obtained, SSA determines they performed SGA in (month/year) and benefits will cease in (month/year).

2. 2. 

   Provide a list of the work reports evaluated.

3. 3. 

   Give a brief and non-technical explanation of the findings to support the SGA cessation determination and include:

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     the period of work evaluated; the employer's name, claimant's job title and

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     a brief description of job duties, hourly rate of pay, average monthly earnings and number of hours worked per week; and

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     a statement, if applicable, regarding subsidies and impairment-related work expenses (see, Determining Countable Earnings DI 10505.010; and Impairment-Related Work Expenses DI 10520.001).

4. 4. 

   Explain that the purpose of the notification is to give the beneficiary an opportunity to provide any additional evidence for consideration.

5. 5. 

   Allow the beneficiary 10 days from receipt of the notice to contact us. If we do not hear from the beneficiary, make a formal determination based on the evidence in file.

   NOTE: 

   Allow five additional days for mailing time before taking action.

6. 6. 

   Inform the beneficiary that when SSA makes a formal determination we send written notification.

Do not follow-up with a beneficiary who fails to respond to the letter. If there is no response in 15 days, process the action. When the beneficiary responds to the letter with a request for more time to get additional evidence:

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  determine the type of evidence and inform the beneficiary that they only have an additional 10 days to provide the additional evidence;

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  document all contacts with the beneficiary or auxiliaries in eWork on the (DW01) screen, whether the contact is in person, by telephone, or by mail;

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  establish appropriate controls, using eWork or the disability control file (DCF) CDR Worksheet (CDRW).

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  complete the determination in eWork and input necessary actions to the DCF and post-entitlement system (POS); and

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  route material. See Details:

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    GN 00301.322, Retention of Paper Material After Faxing into Either the eDIB Folder or Claims Folder using NDRed and

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    DI 81010.135, Storing Non-Medical Evidence in the Electronic Folder (EF).

There may be unusual circumstances where the beneficiary needs additional time beyond the first 10-day extension. These instances should be rare and granted only when reasonable circumstances preclude the beneficiary from obtaining the evidence in question (e.g., illness of sources, sources out of town for 30 days, etc.). If there is no response within the second 10 days, complete the determination.

If you receive additional information that does not change any aspects of the proposed determination, prepare a brief acknowledgment, and include the following language:

“This acknowledges receipt of the additional information you sent us. We will consider this evidence along with the other evidence in your case to determine your continuing entitlement to disability insurance benefits. We will notify you when we make a formal decision.”

Do not process a final determination before 15 days expire unless you receive a written statement from the beneficiary that they are not submitting additional evidence. If the beneficiary responds in writing that they are not submitting additional evidence:

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  document the response in eWork on the development worksheet (DW) screen;

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  store the statement in eView or the Non-Disability Repository (NDRed) system; and

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  process the final determination immediately.

If, as a result of the beneficiary's response, you change the cessation date to a date earlier than the date mentioned in the original notice, send a new due process notice and include the revised information.