I'm a former SSA employee and this is unfortunately way too common. The training on homeschool benefits is practically nonexistent at most field offices. Here's what I recommend: 1. Request to speak with a Claims Specialist, not just a front desk representative 2. Ask them to reference POMS RS 00205.285 (which Sofia mentioned) - if they don't know what POMS is, ask for a supervisor 3. In Texas, homeschools are legally considered private schools, so emphasize this on your SSA-1372 4. Create an "official" letterhead for your homeschool with your name as "Administrator" or "Principal" 5. If they still deny it, file an appeal immediately - appeals often get reviewed by more knowledgeable staff The $1,875/month you're receiving suggests your husband had substantial earnings, so this benefit is definitely worth fighting for. Don't let undertrained staff cost your family thousands of dollars. You have every legal right to these benefits as long as your daughter meets the educational requirements, which she clearly does. Stay persistent and don't take no for an answer from someone who doesn't understand the law!

I'm a homeschooling parent in Arizona and went through this same nightmare two years ago with my 17-year-old daughter's survivor benefits. What finally worked for us was getting our state homeschool association involved - they actually have template letters specifically for SSA situations and can provide documentation that your homeschool is operating legally under state law. The Arizona Families for Home Education helped me draft a letter that explained exactly how homeschools function as private schools under our state statutes. They also provided a sample "school verification form" that I filled out as the school administrator. When I submitted this along with the SSA-1372, it was approved within two weeks. I'd strongly recommend contacting the Texas Home School Coalition (thsc.org) - they probably deal with this issue regularly and will have state-specific advice and templates. They might even be able to connect you with other Texas families who've successfully navigated this process. Also, one thing that helped me was creating a simple one-page "School Information Sheet" that included our homeschool name, my title as Principal/Administrator, our school address (home address), phone number, and a brief statement about meeting Texas education requirements. I attached this to every form I submitted to make it look more official. Don't give up! Your daughter absolutely qualifies for these benefits and you shouldn't have to lose that monthly payment because SSA staff aren't properly trained on homeschool law.

Something to consider that I haven't seen mentioned: your ex-husband's work status doesn't matter for your decision timeline. Whether he's working, retired, or even if he hasn't filed for his own benefits yet, you can still claim ex-spouse benefits as long as he's eligible for benefits (meaning he's at least 62) and you've been divorced for at least 2 years (which you have at 3 years). So his continued working doesn't impact your decision of when to remarry - it's purely based on your age at remarriage (before or after 60).

I'm in a similar situation at 57 and have been researching this extensively. One thing that helped me was getting a personalized benefit estimate from SSA that shows exactly what my own retirement benefit would be versus what I'd get as an ex-spouse (50% of his benefit). The key thing I learned is that you need to look at the TOTAL lifetime benefits, not just the monthly amount. For example, if you claim ex-spouse benefits at 62 but they're reduced for early filing, versus waiting until your full retirement age for your own higher benefit - the math can get complex. I'd strongly recommend getting those actual numbers before making any decisions. You might discover that your own benefit will be competitive with the ex-spouse benefit, especially if you continue working for several more years. That could change the entire calculation and remove the pressure to delay your wedding plans. Also consider that Social Security is just one part of retirement planning - if your new partner brings other financial security to the relationship, that might outweigh the potential SS difference. But definitely get the hard numbers first!

To answer your follow-up question: Yes, you should proactively report significant income changes to Social Security throughout the year. You can do this by calling them directly or visiting your local office. Many people don't realize this, but if you expect to earn over the limit, you can ask SSA to start withholding some benefits in advance to avoid an overpayment situation. They can adjust your benefits throughout the year based on your estimated earnings. And regarding your pension question - correct, regular pension income doesn't count toward the earnings limit. Only wages from jobs and net earnings from self-employment count.

Just wanted to add a few practical tips for anyone dealing with the earnings limit: 1. Keep detailed records of your monthly earnings - don't rely on SSA to track everything perfectly. I use a simple spreadsheet to monitor my year-to-date earnings. 2. If you're self-employed, remember they count NET earnings, not gross income. So you can deduct legitimate business expenses. 3. There's actually a "grace year" rule for the first year you claim retirement benefits where they use a monthly test ($1,896/month for 2025) instead of the annual limit. This can be helpful if you retire mid-year. 4. Bonuses, overtime, and vacation payouts all count toward the earnings limit, so factor those in when planning your work schedule. The system is definitely confusing, but once you understand the rules it becomes more manageable. Good luck with your part-time work plans!

something else to think about is whether your wife would get the lump-sum death payment. its only $255 which is nothing these days but every bit helps

This thread has been incredibly informative! I'm in a similar situation - my husband is 65 and I'm 59, and we've been trying to wrap our heads around all these survivor benefit rules. Reading through everyone's experiences really drives home how important it is to get accurate information upfront. The fact that SSA agents sometimes give conflicting or wrong information is scary when you're talking about decisions that could affect your financial security for decades. I'm definitely going to do more research and maybe use that Claimyr service someone mentioned to get through to an actual expert. It's also reassuring to know that survivors do have more flexibility than I originally thought - the ability to switch between your own benefits and survivor benefits gives you options to optimize your total lifetime benefits. Thanks to everyone who shared their real-world experiences!

I just realized I didn't fully answer your question earlier. The IRS and SSA systems aren't automatically connected for this purpose. Your payment plan is registered in the IRS system, which puts a hold on automated collection actions. You don't need to notify SSA about your tax situation. Just keep making your IRS payments on time.

I went through something very similar when I started collecting disability benefits while owing the IRS about $8,000. The key thing that saved me was having that formal installment agreement in place before my benefits started. As long as you keep up with your $325 monthly payments, the IRS can't touch your Social Security checks. But I'd strongly recommend double-checking that your payment plan is properly documented in their system - maybe call the IRS automated line at 1-800-829-0922 and verify your installment agreement is active and current. That way you'll have peace of mind when your first check arrives next month.