First, you should always check the Social Security notice or decision for information about any time limits and / or deadlines.

Generally, Social Security provides 5 days to receive a notice and 60 days to file an appeal. In other words, Social Security normally gives you 65 days to submit an appeal. This is from the date stamped on the notice, unless you can show the notice was received later.

An appeal must be received by the deadline day. It is not sufficient to have a the appeal postmarked by the deadline. Some notices are dated several days before the post-mark on the envelope. This discrepancy between the date of the letter and the postmark can sometimes be used to show that the 60 days should not begin until a later date. If you are approaching a deadline, even a couple of days can make the difference between filing within the deadline and filing late.

If a deadline falls on weekend or federal holiday, Social Security should accept the appeal on the next business day. Social Security occasionally incorrectly treats these as late appeals, which then requires resolving the issue before the appeal can proceed.

The best practice is not to wait until the last minute to file any appeal! And again, please check the time limit listed on the notice for information about your specific case.

Last updated on November 3, 2011 by stasiukfirm