So sorry about your son! My brother was in a similar situation after a stroke but I just wanted to say don't worry about hurting his retirement in the long run. When disability converts to retirement at full retirement age, they use a special calculation to make sure the years on disability don't count against your lifetime earnings average (they call it a "disability freeze"). So those zero income years while he's recovering won't drag down his retirement amount later.

One more important point: gather as much medical documentation as possible before applying. Get detailed statements from his neurologists about prognosis and expected recovery timeline. The more medical evidence you have upfront, the smoother the process. Also, get a letter from his employer confirming his last day worked and any workplace disability coverage details. You mentioned his workplace disability only covers 6 months - be aware there's a 5-month waiting period for SSDI benefits to begin after the onset date. So apply immediately to minimize any gap between his workplace coverage ending and SSDI beginning.

Wait I'm confused... isn't the PIA for retirement different than for SSDI? My brother said his retirement PIA was calculated differently. That's why I'm worried about my son's benefits changing when I hit retirement age next year. Does anyone know if they use the same formula?

Thanks everyone for all the helpful information! To summarize what I've learned: 1) My son's DAC benefit should stay at 50% of my PIA when I transition to retirement at FRA, 2) My PIA shouldn't change at transition, but might be recalculated through AERO if my part-time work increased my average earnings, 3) I need to verify my son remains coded as DAC during the transition, and 4) I should bring all my earnings documentation to my appointment. This has been so much more helpful than my calls to SSA! I'll update after my appointment next month to let everyone know what I find out.

wait now im confused again lol... does anyone know if paying for internet and phone counts as the kind of support that reduces SSI? my daughters caseworker gave me different answers on different days

Thank you all so much for the helpful explanations! I think I understand now - when answering the 'half support' question, I should include everything I provide (housing, food, clothing, medical expenses, recreation, etc.), but only the food and housing part might reduce his SSI through the ISM rules. I'm going to call SSA tomorrow with a much better understanding of what they're asking. This forum has been incredibly helpful when the official explanations were so confusing!

One additional point that hasn't been mentioned - even after your divorce is finalized and you're 62, you should run calculations to determine whether it's better to take your own benefit or the divorced spouse benefit. You're entitled to the higher of the two. Also, if you take benefits at 62 (either your own or divorced spouse benefits), they'll be permanently reduced. If your own work record might eventually provide a higher benefit, you might want to consider alternatives. There are complex strategies depending on your specific situation. I'd recommend speaking with a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security claiming strategies in addition to consulting directly with SSA.

Hey just wondering - do you know if your husband worked for government with a pension not covered by SS? If so, there's all these complicated WEP/GPO rules that could really mess things up! My friend's ex had a state job and she got way less than expected!!

just want to add that when u switch benefits later make sure to do it in writing not just over phone. my aunt thought she had switched but they didn't process it right and she missed out on higher payments for 8 months before she noticed!!

One more important detail - when planning your strategy, remember that your own retirement benefit continues to grow until age 70 (at 8% per year after FRA), but survivor benefits do NOT grow after your FRA. This means there's no advantage to delaying widow benefits past your full retirement age of 67. In your case, taking reduced widow benefits at 60, then switching to your own benefit at 67 (or even 70 for maximum growth) is likely the optimal strategy given the benefit amounts you mentioned. At age 70, your own benefit would be about $3,472/month compared to the $3,200 survivor benefit at FRA.

My situation is similar to yours. I've been on survivor benefits for 3 years (I'm 64) and I started working part-time at my church. I talked to a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security issues, and he confirmed that SSA uses the ANNUAL limit for ongoing benefits, not monthly. So you should be totally fine as long as you stay under $22,680 for the year. But do yourself a favor and keep careful records of all your earnings in case there's ever a question. I keep a spreadsheet with my monthly earnings and a running total for the year to make sure I don't accidentally go over.

I want to thank everyone for their helpful responses! I feel much better knowing I can manage my annual earnings rather than worrying about each individual month. I'll definitely keep track of my total earnings to make sure I stay under the $22,680 limit for the year. I'm going to call SSA just to confirm this information for my specific situation, but at least now I have a much better understanding of how the earnings test works. This community has been so helpful!

My sister went through this whole mess last year and ended up with a $4200 overpayment notice 9 months later! So stressful! She had no idea she was over the limit until the letter came. Now they're taking money out of every check to repay it. Just double checked with her - she confirms April would definitely count in your situation since that's when benefits start. The actual payment date doesn't matter for the earnings test.

One more thing to consider: if you're going to be close to or over the limit, you should proactively contact SSA to reduce your benefits rather than waiting for them to discover it later. You can estimate your earnings for the year and ask them to withhold benefits accordingly. This prevents the surprise of getting an overpayment notice months later. You can always request a reinstated payment if you end up earning less than expected. Also, keep in mind that the earnings limit will eventually disappear once you reach FRA, so this is a temporary concern.

The tax situation depends on your state too! Some states like NM, UT, VT tax Social Security benefits while others like FL, TX, WA have no state income tax at all. Where do you live? That could make a big difference in your calculations.

Since no one has mentioned it yet - you might want to run some actual numbers on the break-even analysis. If your wife claims at 67 versus waiting until 70, she'll need to live until approximately age 82-83 to break even (where the total benefits received by delaying equal what she would have received by filing at 67). Any years beyond that break-even point would favor delaying. Given that a woman who reaches 67 has an average life expectancy into her mid-80s, statistically delaying often makes sense, even accounting for the taxation of benefits.

Since ALS is progressive and your sister's speech is already affected, I'd suggest looking into assistive technology right away, in addition to the benefits applications. Many ALS patients use eye-tracking technology and speech generating devices that Medicare will cover with the right documentation. Ask her neurologist for a referral to a speech-language pathologist who specializes in ALS right away. They can help with both communication strategies and the documentation needed for Medicare to cover communication devices when needed.

I know everyone's focused on the SSDI/SSI question, but don't forget to look into whether your sister's state has a Medicaid waiver program that could help with home care. Many ALS patients eventually need significant assistance, and these waiver programs can provide caregivers, equipment, and home modifications. The income/asset limits are sometimes more flexible than regular Medicaid too. Also, has she worked enough recently to qualify for short or long-term disability through her business? That might provide some immediate income while the SSDI application is being processed, even with the expedited timeline.

One more thing - make sure you ask about any potential retroactive benefits. Since you applied a year after your FRA, you might be eligible for up to 6 months of retroactive survivor benefits (assuming your husband passed away more than 6 months ago). The SSA doesn't always tell you about this automatically.

my aunt had same thing happen and got a big backpay check! def ask about it