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The only reason to wait until January would be to get a slightly higher monthly benefit (about 2/3 of 1% more) for the rest of her life. It's a trade-off between getting one extra payment in December versus slightly higher payments forever. If she lives long enough (about 12-13 years after starting benefits), the January start date would provide more total benefits over her lifetime.
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One small silver lining - since they're considering January your FRA month, you'd be allowed to earn unlimited income starting in January rather than February without affecting your benefits. So at least that part works in your favor!
That's a good point! I hadn't thought about the earnings test aspect. I'm not working anymore, but that would be helpful for someone still earning income.
For anyone else reading this thread who has a birthday on the 1st of the month, here's what to remember when planning your Social Security filing strategy: 1. You're considered to reach any age on the last day of the previous month 2. This affects your Full Retirement Age date 3. This applies to early filing reductions and delayed retirement credits 4. The earnings test exemption also starts a month earlier 5. The online calculator doesn't automatically account for this rule Always double-check with SSA when planning your filing date, especially if you have a 1st-of-month birthday!
This is really helpful information! I wish I'd known this before filing. At least others can learn from my mistake.
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DONT FORGET TAX RECORDS!!! They asked us for TWO YEARS of tax returns showing we claimed the child as dependent!!! Nobody told us beforehand and we had to go back home to get them and reschedule!!! SUCH A WASTE OF TIME!!!
That's unusual - they typically don't require tax returns just for adding a legally adopted child to benefits. Maybe your situation had some unique aspects? For a straightforward adoption, the final decree should be sufficient to establish the legal relationship. But I suppose it never hurts to bring extra documentation just in case!
Thanks everyone for the helpful advice! I've made a checklist of all the documents mentioned. One more question - does anyone know how long after we submit everything it typically takes for her to start receiving benefits? And will they backpay from the adoption date or from when we apply?
In my experience, it takes about 30-60 days for the payments to start after you apply. As for backpay, they'll typically pay from the date of application, not adoption date, which is why you want to apply as soon as possible after finalizing the adoption. However, since this is a child benefit on a current beneficiary's record (not a new disability claim), the process might be faster. Good luck with everything!
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YOU KNOW WHAT NO ONE IS SAYING??!! That the whole "Compassionate Allowance" thing is STILL gonna take MONTHS!!! My husband had pancreatic cancer (stage 4) which is SUPPOSED to be one of those "automatic" approvals and it STILL took 14 weeks to get approved!!! And then 5 more months before he saw a DIME!!! By then he was... well I won't get into that. But don't count on the government to help in any kind of reasonable time frame!!! The system is BROKEN!!!
I'm so sorry for your loss. You're right that even "fast track" still takes time - our experience was about 10 weeks for approval, then the waiting period. It's not fast enough when someone is seriously ill. ❤️
Thank you all so much for your advice and sharing your experiences. We're going to apply immediately and make sure her doctors document everything thoroughly. I've already started gathering all her medical records. One last question - does anyone know if private disability insurance through her employer affects the SSDI application? She has some short-term disability coverage through work.
Great question. Private disability insurance doesn't affect SSDI eligibility. She can receive both simultaneously, though many private policies reduce their benefit by the amount received from SSDI (this is called an "offset"). Definitely have her apply for the short-term disability through her employer immediately. This can provide income during the SSDI waiting period. Just be aware that she'll need to report any SSDI payments to the private insurer once those begin, as specified in her policy.
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when my husband retired our daughter was already getting benefits from my disability (SSDI). we switched her to his record bc it was like $230 more per month. but it took forever!!! almost 3 months to process and the lady at ssa said they dont do any retroactive payments for the difference during that waiting period. just so u know!
That's not right! They SHOULD do retroactive adjustments! This is exactly what I'm talking about with how broken the system is. Did you file an appeal? They gave us back payments once I finally got through to someone who knew what they were doing.
Something else to consider - check if you're at full retirement age (FRA) when you file. If you're filing early, your benefit is reduced, which also reduces what your children can receive. If you can wait until your FRA (probably 66 and some months for you), the kids would get the maximum 50% of your PIA. My husband waited until his FRA specifically for this reason, even though he wanted to retire earlier.
That's a really important point I hadn't considered. I was planning to file at 65, which is a bit before my FRA of 66 and 8 months. Maybe I should reconsider that plan if it affects the kids' benefits too. Thanks for pointing this out.
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The $30 thing is called a personal needs allowance. my mom works in a care facility and says its different amounts in different states. some states give more like $50 or even $70. which state are you in?
Even $70 is still ridiculously low! Try living on that for a MONTH. The whole system is designed to strip people of their dignity and independence.
If you decide to manage your own benefits rather than having a Rep Payee, you would typically work with the facility's billing department and your Medicaid case manager to determine the exact amount you need to pay. They would provide you with a statement showing: 1. The total cost of your care 2. The amount Medicaid is covering 3. Your required contribution (which would be your SSDI minus your personal needs allowance) You would then be responsible for paying that amount to the facility each month. Some facilities offer direct deposit options, while others accept checks or other payment methods. Regarding advocacy organizations, I would recommend contacting: 1. Your local Legal Aid office, which often has elder law/benefits specialists 2. The Disability Rights organization in your state 3. The Long-Term Care Ombudsman program in your area (they specifically advocate for people in facilities) All of these services are typically free and can provide valuable guidance specific to your state's regulations.
Thank you so much for all this information. I'll contact our Long-Term Care Ombudsman first since that seems most relevant to my situation. I'm really disappointed about the personal needs allowance being so low, but at least I understand the system better now. I appreciate everyone's help and experiences.
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Thanks everyone for the helpful information! I talked with my husband about all this, and we're going to look up his exact pension amount and do that GPO calculation to see what we're dealing with. Sounds like if the Social Security Fairness Act ever passes, we'd be in much better shape, but we shouldn't count on that happening anytime soon. I guess I'll go ahead and file for my benefits when I turn 70 in December, and then we can apply for his spousal benefits after that. At least the survivor benefits might help him somewhat if I pass away first, even with the GPO reduction.
That sounds like a good plan. One more thing - make sure your husband requests a Social Security Statement (Form SSA-7004) to verify his exact number of credits. Sometimes there are earnings that weren't properly recorded, especially from long ago. It's possible he might be closer to 40 quarters than you think if there were any reporting errors. And yes, filing at 70 maximizes your benefit, which is especially important since it also maximizes any potential survivor benefits for your husband later.
I heard you need 10 years of work to get ANY SS benefits at all, so if he's only got 29 quarters (about 7 years) doesn't that mean he's completely out of luck for his OWN benefit regardless of this GPO stuff? That's what happened to my aunt.
You're correct. To qualify for retirement benefits based on your own work record, you need 40 quarters (10 years) of covered employment. With 29 quarters, the original poster's husband doesn't qualify for his own retirement benefit. However, the 40-quarter requirement doesn't apply to spousal or survivor benefits. You can receive those regardless of your own work history, though as we've discussed, the GPO will reduce them if you receive a non-covered government pension.
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just wondering why u guys took benefits early anyway?? wouldn't it be better to wait till 70 and get the max? that's what my brother did
We thought about waiting, but honestly we wanted to start enjoying a semi-retirement lifestyle while we're still healthy and active. We figured the reduced benefits now are worth more to us than larger benefits later. Everyone's situation is different!
A final important tip: keep very good records of your earnings throughout the year. I recommend creating a simple spreadsheet to track monthly income, and regularly check it against the annual limit. This makes it much easier when you need to communicate with SSA about your earnings and helps avoid surprises at tax time.
That's excellent advice. I'll set up a tracking spreadsheet this weekend so we can monitor our progress toward the limit. Better to stay organized from the start!
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Sorta related but different - my wife is a green card holder and I'm retiring next year. Do I need to do anything special to apply for her spousal benefits or is it the same process as for citizens?
For green card holders living in the US, the application process is essentially the same as for citizens. Your wife will need her green card information, marriage certificate, and possibly birth certificate with translation if it's not in English. The main difference comes into play if you ever decide to live abroad.
To give you some additional information: for your wife to receive spousal benefits as a non-US citizen living abroad, she must meet one of these requirements: 1. Have been married to you for at least 5 years, OR 2. Be entitled to some type of German social security benefit, OR 3. Have lived in the US for at least 5 years during which the marital relationship existed Based on your 13 years overseas, I'm assuming you meet the first condition. When you apply, make sure to have your marriage certificate and her German identification documents ready. The application will need to be processed through the Federal Benefits Unit responsible for Germany, which operates out of the US Consulate in Frankfurt. The tax treaty is handled separately from eligibility, so don't let an uninformed agent confuse these issues.
We've been married for 15 years, so that's good to know we qualify under that first requirement. Do I need to contact the Frankfurt FBU directly or can I continue the application process through the regular SSA channels? This has all been so confusing.
Melissa Lin
Couple things nobody mentioned: 1. With SSDI you can actually try going back to work under their Ticket to Work program without losing benefits right away. They have a 9-month trial work period where you keep full benefits even if working. 2. If your early retirement payment would be higher than SSI (which is different from SSDI and has strict income/asset limits), you might qualify for both partial SSDI and partial retirement to maximize your monthly income. 3. SSDI applications get approved faster if you're over 55 because they have different vocational guidelines for older workers. Good luck!
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Romeo Quest
•This is wrong info! SSI and SSDI are totally different programs. SSI is for people with no work history and almost no assets. SSDI is based on your work history and what you paid into SS. You can't get both SSDI and retirement at the same time!
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Hugh Intensity
Based on everything shared here, I think your next steps should be: 1. Schedule an appointment with a Social Security representative (online or phone) to discuss your specific situation and options 2. Talk to your doctors about providing detailed documentation about your cognitive limitations and expected recovery timeline, specifically addressing whether impairments may last 12+ months 3. Consider consulting with an SSDI attorney for a free consultation before filing 4. Prepare a detailed work history and list of all your medical providers 5. Apply for SSDI as soon as your documentation is in order Given your age and situation, this is definitely worth pursuing over simply taking early retirement benefits. The approval rates for well-documented cases with clear medical evidence are much higher than many people realize.
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Sunny Wang
•Thank you for laying out these steps - this gives me a clear plan to follow. I've been feeling so overwhelmed trying to make these decisions while still dealing with recovery. I'll start gathering my documentation and look into scheduling that SSA appointment right away.
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