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Home :: FAQ :: Social Security Disability Hearing

What if I let the 60 days run on my appeal, can I file late?

Yes.  According to the Social Security Administration you can file your appeal (Your Request for Reconsideration and/or Request for Hearing by an Administrative Law Judge”, after 60 days if you have good cause for late filing.
In determining whether the claimant had good cause for failure to file a timely appeal request SSA considers:

  1. whether circumstances impeded the claimant’s efforts to pursue his/her claim;
  2. whether SSA/CMS actions were confusing or misleading;
  3. whether the claimant understood the requirements of the Social Security Act (the     Act), resulting from amendments to the Act, other legislation, or court decisions; and
  4. whether the claimant’s physical, mental, educational, or linguistic limitations (including any lack of facility with the English language) prevented him/her from filing a timely request or from understanding or knowing about the need to file a timely request for appeal. 

NOTE: Good cause for late filing may apply to any person standing in the place of the claimant, like the claimant’s representative or attorney.

Some examples of Good Cause are:

Circumstances where good cause may exist include, but are not limited to, the following situations:

  1. the claimant was seriously ill and was prevented from contacting SSA in person, in writing, or through a friend, relative, or other person;
  2. there was a death or serious illness in the claimant’s immediate family;
  3. pertinent records were destroyed or damaged by fire or other accidental cause;
  4. the claimant was actively seeking evidence to support his/her claim, and his/her search, though diligent, was not completed before the time period expired;
  5. the claimant requested additional information concerning SSA’s determination within the time limit.  (After receiving the information, the individual has 60 days to request a reconsideration or hearing.  The individual has 30 days after receipt of such information to request AC review or file a civil action);
  6. the claimant was furnished confusing, incorrect, or incomplete information or was otherwise misled by a representative of SSA or CMS about his/her right to request continued benefits, reconsideration, a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge, AC review, or to begin a civil action;
  7. the claimant did not understand the requirement to file timely or was not able (mentally or physically) to file timely;
  8. a notice of the determination or decision was never received (e.g., SSA used incorrect address or claimant moved);
  9. the claimant transmitted the appeal request to another government agency in good faith within the time limit and the request did not reach SSA until after the time period had expired;
  10. the claimant thought his/her representative had filed the appeal (good cause applies to the claimant despite whether the claimant is still represented or represented by a different person);
  11. unusual or unavoidable circumstances exist, which demonstrate that the claimant could not reasonably be expected to have been aware of the need to file timely, or such circumstances prevented him/her from filing timely.