(a) General. Under some circumstances, we may stop your benefits before we make a determination. Generally, we do this when the information we have clearly shows you are not now disabled but we cannot determine when your disability ended. These situations are described in paragraph (b)(1) and other reasons are given in paragraph (b)(2) of this section. We refer to this as a suspension of benefits. Your benefits, as well as those of your dependents (regardless of where they receive their benefits), may be suspended. When we do this we will give you advance notice. (See § 404.1595.) We will contact your spouse and children if they are receiving benefits on your Social Security number, and the benefits are being mailed to an address different from your own.
(b) When we will suspend your benefits -
(1) You are not now disabled. We will suspend your benefits if the information we have clearly shows that you are not disabled and we will be unable to complete a determination soon enough to prevent us from paying you more monthly benefits than you are entitled to. This may occur when -
(i) New medical or other information clearly shows that you are able to do substantial gainful activity and your benefits should have stopped more than 2 months ago;
(ii) You completed a 9-month period of trial work more than 2 months ago and you are still working;
(iii) At the time you filed for benefits your condition was expected to improve and you were expected to be able to return to work. You subsequently did return to work more than 2 months ago with no significant medical restrictions; or
(iv) You are not entitled to a trial work period and you are working.
(2) Other reasons. We will also suspend your benefits if -
(i) You have failed to respond to our request for additional medical or other evidence and we are satisfied that you received our request and our records show that you should be able to respond; or
(ii) We are unable to locate you and your checks have been returned by the Post Office as undeliverable.
(c) When we will not suspend your cash benefits. We will not suspend your cash benefits if -
(1) You have become disabled by another impairment; or
(2) Even though your impairment is no longer disabling,
(i) You are participating in an appropriate program of vocational rehabilitation services, employment services, or other support services, as described in § 404.327(a) and (b);
(ii) You began participating in the program before the date your disability ended; and
(iii) We have determined under § 404.328 that your completion of the program, or your continuation in the program for a specified period of time, will increase the likelihood that you will not have to return to the disability benefit rolls.
(d) When the suspension is effective. We will suspend your benefits effective with the month in which it is determined in accordance with paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section that your disability benefits should stop due to your failure, without good cause (see § 404.911), to comply with our request for necessary information for your continuing disability review. This review is to determine whether or not you continue to meet the disability requirements of the law. When we have received the information, we will reinstate your benefits for any previous month for which they are otherwise payable, and continue with the CDR process.
(e) When we will terminate your benefits. We will terminate your benefits following 12 consecutive months of benefit suspension because you did not comply with our request for information in accordance with paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section. We will count the 12-month suspension period from the start of the first month that you stopped receiving benefits (see paragraph (d) of this section). This termination is effective with the start of the 13th month after the suspension began because you failed to cooperate.
[45 FR 55584, Aug. 20, 1980, as amended at 47 FR 31543, July 21, 1982; 47 FR 52693, Nov. 23, 1982; 51 FR 17617, May 14, 1986; 68 FR 40123, July 7, 2003; 70 FR 36507, June 24, 2005; 71 FR 60822, Oct. 17, 2006]