Thank you all for the helpful responses! This clears up a lot of my confusion. It sounds like I should expect my 2024 earnings to be reflected in SSA's systems by mid-2025, and since I'm planning to wait until 2026 to apply for benefits, those earnings will definitely be included in my initial benefit calculation. That's a relief since 2023 was such a low year for me during medical leave.

I went through something similar a few years back when I had a career gap. One thing to keep in mind is that Social Security also indexes your earnings for inflation when calculating benefits, so your older earnings get adjusted upward. This means that even though your 2024 earnings will be higher in raw dollars, the indexed value of your previous good earning years might still be competitive depending on how long ago they were. You can get a rough estimate by looking at the wage indexing factors on SSA's website - they publish these annually. It might help you better understand whether your 2024 return to work will significantly boost your eventual benefit or just marginally improve it.

Final update: You all have been so helpful through this stressful situation! I wanted to share what's happened after taking your advice. I filed all the recommended reports and placed credit freezes. The credit card companies closed the fraudulent accounts after I sent death certificates. The most progress came after using that Claimyr service someone suggested to reach SSA directly. I actually got through to a knowledgeable agent who confirmed my husband's death was properly recorded but explained the earnings issue slipped through during employer reporting. They're removing the false earnings and flagging his SSN in their system for enhanced monitoring. They also connected me with their OIG (Office of Inspector General) to ensure a thorough investigation. It's been exhausting but I feel like I've done everything possible to shut this down. Thank you all again for your guidance through this ordeal!

Thank you for sharing your experience and updates throughout this ordeal - it's incredibly helpful for others who might face similar situations. Your systematic approach to handling this identity theft was exactly right. I'm glad the Claimyr service helped you get through to a knowledgeable SSA agent who could actually resolve the earnings issue and set up enhanced monitoring. One additional tip for anyone reading this thread: if you're dealing with deceased family member identity theft, consider requesting annual Social Security statements for the deceased person (if you're the legal representative). This can help you catch fraudulent activity early before it becomes as extensive as what happened here with the credit cards. It's unfortunate that protecting deceased loved ones' identities requires so much effort, but your detailed documentation of the process will definitely help others navigate this same nightmare.

One more important point: make sure you're clear about which type of benefits your son receives. You mentioned DAC (Disabled Adult Child) benefits from his mother's record, which are Title II benefits (sometimes called SSDI). These are different from SSI (Supplemental Security Income), which has much stricter income and resource limits. For DAC benefits, the primary concern is whether he's engaging in Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). Since he's not earning income from this activity, it's unlikely to affect his benefits, but as others have mentioned, documenting everything and potentially reporting it is a good idea for transparency. I've helped many families navigate these waters, and in your situation, I recommend: 1. Keep detailed records of all sales, expenses, and donations 2. Consider sending a letter to your local SSA office describing the activity 3. Focus on the therapeutic/social aspects of the activity in your documentation 4. Keep the business funds completely separate from personal funds Regarding forming a nonprofit - this adds significant administrative burden without necessarily providing additional protection for his benefits. A simpler approach might be to partner with the existing animal shelter as a program under their nonprofit umbrella.

I'm dealing with a similar situation with my daughter who has autism and receives DAC benefits. She's been making and selling greeting cards at craft fairs, but like your son, all proceeds go to charity (in her case, a local food bank). What I learned from our experience: SSA cares more about the structure and documentation than the actual activity itself. We created a simple written agreement with the food bank showing they receive 100% of proceeds, and we maintain a separate checking account just for this activity. Every penny in gets documented and donated. The key insight our disability attorney shared: frame this as a therapeutic/social activity rather than a business venture in any communications with SSA. Emphasize the social skills development, routine building, and community connection aspects. This helps distinguish it from competitive employment. One practical tip: consider having the animal shelter sell the birdhouses directly rather than your son selling them and donating proceeds. This removes him from the "sales" aspect entirely and makes it clearly volunteer work/donation of goods. Best of luck navigating this - it's wonderful that your son has found something meaningful to do that helps animals!

Thank you everyone for the helpful information! I'm going to create my Social Security account online tonight and look at my estimated benefits. Sounds like I need to wait until I'm 62 (and until he's 62 as well), but at least I know I have options. This is such a relief after thinking I might be out of luck because of his remarriage.

I went through this EXACT situation!!! My ex remarried a younger woman right after our divorce but I was able to claim on his record when I turned 62. The worker at my local SS office was AMAZING and explained everything. BUT she said that if I ever remarry I would LOSE the ex-spousal benefit!!! So keep that in mind if you're dating anyone... unfortunaely remarrying can actually COST you money in this situation!

As someone who just went through a similar ordeal applying for disability benefits while living in the UK, I can't emphasize enough how broken the international SSA system is right now. I had to make over 20 attempts to get through, and like many others here, had multiple "ghost appointments" where nobody called. What finally worked for me was a combination of several strategies mentioned here: calling right at 7am Eastern time, using the Claimyr service (which is legit and worth every penny), and having my sister in Florida also try calling on my behalf. The domestic lines really do seem to work better. One additional tip I haven't seen mentioned - if you're having trouble with the online my Social Security account due to foreign address formatting issues, try using a US address temporarily just to create the account and submit the initial contact request. You can update the address once you're actually speaking with someone. The important thing is getting into their system somehow. Ruby, congratulations on finally getting through! Your persistence paid off. For everyone else still struggling, don't give up. The system is absolutely terrible right now, but people are getting through eventually. Document everything, try multiple approaches, and be prepared to spend way more time on this than should be necessary.

This whole thread has been incredibly eye-opening about the state of SSA's international services. I'm a US citizen living in Australia and have been putting off applying for my retirement benefits because I keep hearing horror stories like these. Reading through everyone's experiences, it's clear this isn't just isolated incidents - there's a systematic breakdown in how SSA handles overseas applications. What really frustrates me is that we're not asking for special treatment here. We paid into the system our entire working lives just like domestic applicants, but we're getting drastically inferior service just because we live abroad. The fact that people have to pay third-party services like Claimyr just to reach their own government agency is absurd. Ruby, I'm so glad you finally got through and that your application is progressing! Your persistence is inspiring. For everyone else still fighting this battle - the strategies shared here seem to be the best available workarounds until SSA fixes their broken system. The early morning calling time, using the correct international numbers, and documenting everything seem to be the common threads among the success stories. Has anyone tried reaching out to their congressional representatives about these issues? I know we can't vote from overseas, but we're still constituents, and this seems like the kind of systematic failure that might warrant congressional oversight.