I just went through this exact same situation last month! I was scheduled for a virtual SSA appointment and didn't receive my Teams link until literally the day before my appointment. I was checking my email obsessively for weeks thinking they had forgotten about me. When it finally came, it was from an address like "noreply.ssa.gov" and had "SSA Virtual Appointment Confirmation" in the subject line. A couple of things that might help while you wait: First, make sure you have the SSA office locator bookmarked (ssa.gov/locator) so you can call your local office directly if needed - they're sometimes easier to reach than the main 800 number. Second, definitely test Microsoft Teams ahead of time, even if it's just joining a test meeting by yourself. The SSA rep will expect your camera and microphone to work right away. The waiting is definitely nerve-wracking, but from what I've experienced and seen others post here, getting the link 1-3 days before seems to be their standard (though frustrating) timeline. Hang in there!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now! I have my SSA retirement appointment scheduled for March 15th and haven't received my Teams link yet either. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been so helpful - it sounds like the 2-3 day timeline is pretty standard, even though it's anxiety-inducing for those of us waiting. I'm definitely going to start checking my spam folder daily and use that office locator tool to get my local SSA office number as backup. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and tips - it's making me feel much more prepared and less worried that they forgot about me!

I'm so incredibly sorry for your loss. Reading about your sister's situation brought tears to my eyes - she absolutely would have qualified for survivor benefits and could have been receiving them for over a year before she passed away. At 61, unmarried, with a 15-year marriage to her ex-husband, she met every single requirement. What makes this even more heartbreaking is that the Social Security Administration literally had all the information they needed sitting in their databases. They knew when her ex-husband died, they had records of their marriage and divorce, they knew her age and status - yet they made the deliberate choice to stay silent while she struggled financially. The survivor benefit system allows both ex-wives to collect simultaneously without affecting each other's payments, and yes, benefits can start as early as age 60 (unlike retirement benefits). Even with the early filing reduction of about 28.5%, those payments could have made an enormous difference in her quality of life during those final months. Unfortunately, there's no way to file retroactively after someone passes away - benefits end at death. But please don't let your sister's struggle be meaningless. Consider reaching out to local senior centers, women's organizations, community groups, and your congressional representatives about this systemic failure. So many divorced women have no idea they're entitled to survivor benefits from ex-husbands. Your advocacy could prevent other families from experiencing this same devastating situation. Your sister's memory deserves that kind of meaningful action to help others.

I'm so deeply sorry for your loss. This breaks my heart - your sister absolutely would have qualified for survivor benefits at age 61. She met every requirement: 15-year marriage (well over the 10-year minimum), unmarried status, and over age 60. She could have been receiving these benefits for over a year before she passed away. What's most infuriating is that SSA had all the pieces of information they needed - your sister's marriage records, the divorce decree showing it lasted 15 years, her ex-husband's death notification, and her current status. Yet they chose to remain silent while she struggled financially, essentially relying on people to somehow magically know these complex rules exist. The system is designed this way deliberately - it saves money by keeping eligible people in the dark. Your sister's situation is tragically common, especially among divorced women who have no idea they're entitled to survivor benefits from ex-husbands. While it's too late to file retroactively (benefits unfortunately end when someone passes away), please consider channeling this pain into advocacy. Contact local senior centers, women's groups, community organizations, and your congressional representatives about this notification gap. Many people are struggling right now who could be getting help they don't even know exists. Your sister's memory could literally save other families from experiencing this same heartbreak. That kind of meaningful action is how we honor those we've lost while creating change for the living.

I'm just starting to receive my SS benefits next month and this entire thread has been absolutely invaluable! As a complete newcomer, I had no idea that early deposits were even a thing, so I was just planning to expect my payment exactly on the scheduled date. Now I understand I might get a pleasant surprise, but more importantly, I've learned why I should never rely on early timing for bill payments. The stories about holiday disruptions and people getting hit with late fees really drove the point home. I'm definitely going to budget everything around the official payment date and treat any early arrivals as a bonus. Question for the group - for those who've been through your first holiday season with SS, are there specific months I should be extra cautious about? Like November/December around Thanksgiving and Christmas? Want to make sure I have extra cushion during those times!

I'm about 4 months into receiving my SS disability benefits and can definitely confirm the early deposit pattern! Mine consistently arrives 2-3 days ahead of schedule through my local credit union. When I first started getting them, I was tempted to schedule some bills earlier to take advantage of the timing, but after reading similar discussions in other SS groups, I decided to stick with the conservative approach from the beginning. So glad I did! Just last month during Presidents Day weekend, my payment came exactly on the official date instead of early - if I had been counting on the early timing, it could have caused problems with my rent payment. Now I budget everything around the guaranteed date and just treat early deposits as a nice surprise. Sometimes I'll use the early money for groceries or gas, but never anything critical. This thread is such a great resource for newcomers - the advice about being extra cautious during holiday periods is spot on!

This thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I'm a self-employed contractor and had no idea this was such a widespread issue. Reading everyone's experiences has me worried about my own records now. Quick question for those who've been through this - is there any way to proactively check if your self-employment income is being properly recorded before it becomes a problem? Should I be reviewing my SSA earnings record annually? Also, @Isabel Vega mentioned getting IRS tax account transcripts as key documentation. For those who used this successfully, did you need transcripts for just the missing years or for additional years as well for comparison? I'm definitely bookmarking this thread and all the specific forms/procedures mentioned. Sounds like having Form SSA-7008, requesting a protective filing date, and getting a case number are the critical first steps. Thank you all for sharing such detailed information - this could save people months of frustration!

This entire thread has been a goldmine of information! I'm actually dealing with something similar - my self-employment income from 2020-2022 isn't showing up properly in my SSA records either. Reading through everyone's experiences, it's clear that the key is being extremely organized and persistent. The advice about Form SSA-7008, getting IRS transcripts, requesting a protective filing date, and using both local office and national number approaches simultaneously seems like the winning strategy. What really struck me is how @Isabel Vega mentioned that most local offices don't actually process these corrections anymore - they just forward documents to processing centers. That explains why so many documents get "lost"! For anyone else dealing with this, I'd also suggest keeping a detailed log of every interaction - dates, times, names of representatives, what was discussed, and what documents were provided. It sounds like documentation is absolutely critical when dealing with SSA. One question for those who've successfully resolved this: How long did the entire process take from start to finish once you had all the right documentation and followed the proper procedures?

As someone new to the Social Security system myself, this discussion has been incredibly helpful! I'm still a few years away from retirement, but I'm already learning so much from everyone's shared experiences. From what I'm gathering, the AERO process should automatically handle your recalculation around October 2025, but the smart approach seems to be staying informed rather than just hoping everything works perfectly. Your situation sounds really promising - $58,500 from 2024 replacing what appears to be a much lower earning year should definitely result in an increase, even if it ends up being more modest than initially expected due to how the benefit formula works. I'm taking notes on all the practical advice here: checking your online Social Security account to verify your 2024 earnings get posted correctly, keeping good records of your income documentation, and being prepared to follow up if needed. What gives me the most confidence is seeing both the success stories where everything worked automatically and the experiences where people had to be more proactive - it shows that while the system generally works, there are concrete steps we can take to advocate for ourselves. Thanks for starting such a valuable discussion - the real-world insights from this community are so much more helpful than just reading official government resources!

As someone who's also new to Social Security, this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm still several years from retirement myself, but reading through everyone's real-world experiences has given me so much confidence about what to expect when my time comes. The clear consensus that the AERO process should work automatically for your situation, combined with all the practical advice about staying proactive, creates such a helpful roadmap. Your $58,500 from 2024 replacing what sounds like a significantly lower earning year should definitely result in an increase - it's encouraging to see how the system is designed to recognize and reward continued work even after retirement begins. I'm taking detailed notes on all the actionable steps shared here: monitoring the my Social Security account to verify 2024 earnings are posted correctly, keeping thorough documentation, setting those October 2025 calendar reminders, and being prepared to contact SSA if anything seems off. What I find most reassuring is how this community has shared both the smooth automatic experiences and the times when people needed to advocate for themselves - it gives newcomers like us both realistic expectations and concrete tools for success. Thanks for starting such an informative discussion that's become a masterclass in navigating Social Security benefit recalculations!