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How To Apply for Disability in New Hampshire

 
When an applicant applies for Social Security Disability benefits, the application process is very much alike between states, if not identical. Even though the two main disability programs (SSI and SSDI) are federal programs, there can be small differences in the way each state handles and processes disability claims. The information below is specific to New Hampshire Disability benefits.

To find your local Social Security field office, Disability Determinations Services office, or an Office of Disability Adjudication and Review in New Hampshire, click here.
 

Chances of Approval at a Hearing

In the state of New Hampshire, the chances of being approved by an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) at an appeals hearing is considerably lower than the national average. This means applicants need to be very cautious and detailed when filling out an application without professional assistance. Throughout the state, there are a total of 8 ALJs that serve in the courts and attend hearings. Below are updated (2015) statistics from New Hampshire's hearing offices.

 

New Hampshire National
Avg. Hearing Wait Time 15.0 Months 14.9 Months
Average Processing Time 411 Days 461 Days
Cases Approved 37% 44%
Cases Denied 39% 38%
Cases Dismissed 23% 18%

 

New Hampshire State Supplements for SSI

The federal benefit rate is the maximum amount of benefits an individual may receive from the Social Security Administration (SSA) for Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI). Currently the federal benefit rate is at $733. However, states are allowed to provide additional benefits to claimants of SSI to accommodate for their cost of living.

Like most other states, New Hampshire also provides additional state supplemental benefits to its citizens. How much a claimant can receive in state supplemental benefits depends on their current living situation. Single, non-married applicants can receive an additional $27 per month while married applicants can receive an additional $21 per month.

 

State Statistics

Listed below are statistics from the latest version (2013) of the state annual report conducted by the Social Security Administration that was release in December 2014. The SSA hasn't released any versions since then because it takes a lot of time and resources to collect and organize so much data from each individual state. Despite that this data is a few years old, the numbers closely resemble the real numbers of today. The information will be updated once the SSA releases the 2014 state report.

 

Resident Population 849,132
Percentage of Population on SSI 1.5%
Percentage of Population on SSDI 6.0%
Average Monthly SSI Payment $490.17
Average Monthly SSDI Payment $1,124.10

 

New Hampshire Vocational Rehabilitation Services

The Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VR) of New Hampshire provides support to local citizens with disabilities by helping them prepare, find, and retain work in the labor force. The VR will find jobs for an individual that accommodates for his or her disabling condition(s) as well as help train that individual for those positions. Any claimant who is already receiving either SSI or SSDI is eligible for these services. Although with limited resources, the VR can only assist so many people at a given point. Therefore call and make an appointment as soon as possible to receive help.

To contact your local VR office in New Hampshire, visit our Vocational Rehabilitation Offices page or call the NH administrative office:

NH Vocational Rehabilitation

21 South Fruit Street Suite 20
Concord, NH 03301
(603) 271-3471 or 1-800-299-1647
Fax (603) 271-7095

Social Security Field Offices, DDS & ODAR

The Social Security Administration serves the disabled residents of New Hampshire with 6 Social Security Field Offices, 1 Disability Determination Service offices and 1 Offices of Disability Adjudication and Review.

In New Hampshire, approximately 7.5% of the population are considered disabled by the SSA’s standards and the SSA gave out on average about $69.9 million dollars in benefits per month in 2013.

If you need assistance during the Social Security Disability application process, please contact your relevant disability office listed below for help.

New Hampshire Social Security Field Offices

Concord Office

70 Commercial St
Concord NH 03301
1-603-225-8475

Keene Office

34 Mechanic Street
Keene NH 03431
(603) 352-3487

Littleton Office

177 Main Street
Littleton NH 03561
(603) 444-2945

Manchester Office

2 Wall St
Manchester NH 03101
(603) 641-2180

Nashua Office

175 Amherst St
Nashua NH 03064
(603) 880-0295

Portsmouth Office

80 Daniel St
Portsmouth NH 03801
(603) 433-0716

Disability Determination Services

New Hampshire Office of Disability Determination Services

Disability Determination Services
21 South Fruit St., Suite 30
Concord, NH 03301
Phone: 603-271-3341

Office of Disability Adjudication and Review

New Hampshire Office of Disability Adjudication and Review

SSA Office of Disability Adjudication and Review
Suite 303
1750 Elm Street
Manchester, NH 03104
Telephone: (888) 318-7973
Fax: (603) 623-4050
eFile Fax: (877) 787-5233
Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Servicing the following Social Security Field Offices

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Concord, Keene, Littleton, Manchester, Nashua and VERMONT: Burlington, Montpelier, Rutland