What Is The Five Step Sequential Evaluation Process?

In order to meet the required definition of disability under the law, an applicant "must have a severe impairment(s) that makes you unable to do your past relevant work or any other substantial gainful work that exists in the national economy."

If you do not have an impairment that meets one of Social Security's listings, then Social Security will analyze your Residual Functional Capacity under the five-step sequential evaluation process.

The five-step sequential evaluation process is a series of steps that Social Security uses to analyze your condition to determine whether or not you are disabled.

According to Social Security, "if we can find that you are disabled or not disabled at a step, we make our determination or decision and we do not go on to the next step. If we cannot find that you are disabled or not disabled at a step, we go on to the next step."

1. Are you working? 
This is usually fairly straight forward, if you are engaged in substantial gainful activity then Social Security determines you to be working.

2. Is your medical condition "severe"?
Your disabilities must interfere with basic work related activities. Additionally, your disabilities must meet the Social Security duration requirement. This means "unless your impairment is expected to result in death, it must have lasted or must be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months."

3. Does your disability meet a listing? 
If your condition meets one of  Social Security's listings or your condition is of equal severity to one of the listings then you will be found to be disabled.

4. Can you do past relevant work?
Social Security looks at the work that you did over the past 15 years to determine whether or not you can still do that work. If Social Security determines that you can still do this past work, then you will be found to be not disabled. If Social Security determines that due to physical or mental impairments that you cannot do your past relevant work, then they will proceed to the final step in deciding whether you are disabled.

5. Can you do any type of work?
If Social Security determines at Step 4 that you can no longer do your past relevant work, then they will look at whether you can adjust to another type of work. Social Security will consider your medical impairments (if any), physical condition along with your age, education, past work experience and any transferable job skills that you may have. 

If Social Security determines that you can make an adjustment to another type of work then they will find that you are not disabled. However, if Social Security determines that you can't adjust to another type of work you will be found to be disabled. 

According to the Regulations, if Social Security finds that you are capable of adjusting and doing other work, they are "responsible for providing evidence that demonstrates that other work exists in significant numbers in the national economy."