WAIT I THINK EVERYONE IS MISSING AN IMPORTANT POINT!!! Even if you use the annual limit, if you earn over the ENTIRE annual limit in a single month, ALL your benefits for the year could be withheld! SSA regulations say if you earn more than your annual limit, they withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn over the limit. If you earn the whole $25,410 in January, they'd withhold your ENTIRE annual benefit!!!! BE CAREFUL!!!

Just wanted to give a quick update. I called SSA today and spoke with a rep who confirmed what most of you have said. As long as I apply in January WITH January as my benefit month, I can use the annual earnings test for all of 2025. I made sure to specifically tell them I wanted January 2025 as my benefit month, not February. The rep did initially try to set it for February saying "that's our normal procedure" but I politely insisted on January, and they were able to do it. So relieved I don't have to track monthly earnings! Thanks for all your help everyone.

If you're determined to maximize what you can get, here's what I'd suggest: 1. Consider working part-time to earn those final 3 quarters. In 2025, you need to earn about $1,640 per quarter to get a credit. So that's around $4,920 total to get your 40 quarters. 2. Once you have 40 quarters, you'd be eligible for your own benefit (though it will be small and reduced by WEP), but it might be more than what you'd get as a spouse after the GPO reduction. 3. Request a detailed benefits calculation from SSA. They can run the numbers with and without the additional credits to help you make an informed decision. 4. Make sure SSA has your complete earnings record. Sometimes quarters from decades ago can be missing, and you might actually be closer to 40 than you think. Additionally, both WEP and GPO have maximum reduction amounts, so in some scenarios, it might be worthwhile to understand exactly how these would impact your specific situation.

I want to thank everyone for all this helpful information. I'm going to try that Claimyr service mentioned above to actually speak with someone at SSA without the endless waiting and disconnections. I'm also going to look into part-time work to get those last 3 quarters - even if the benefit is small, it sounds better than nothing. The whole GPO situation is really disheartening. I had no idea my teaching career would end up reducing benefits I might have received through my husband's record. I wish there had been better retirement planning resources specifically for teachers when I was younger. If anyone has had success getting benefits despite GPO or has found other strategies, I'd still love to hear about them!

Is anyone else frustrated that they make this stuff so complicated? Like why can't they just have one payment date for everyone? Or at least explain things clearly?

One more thing to be aware of - if you're under Full Retirement Age (FRA) and working, make sure you understand the earnings test. If you earn above certain limits ($20,520 for 2025 if you're under FRA for the full year), they'll withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above the limit. This could potentially explain an adjustment if they received updated earnings information for you.

Update: I called my local SS office (finally got through after trying different times of day) and got some clarification. The rep said I should: 1. Keep a simple monthly log of hours spent on eBay business activities 2. Track both my gross sales and estimated expenses by month 3. Use the SSA-131 form to report any months where I either work more than 45 hours OR make net profit above the monthly limit ($1,860) She said after my first year on benefits, they'll only look at my annual total from Schedule C, but for this first year, they look at it month by month. Thanks everyone for your help!

Im in the same boat with my Poshmark business and what I do is guesstimate my hours each week and write them down in a planner. For income I just download the monthly sales report and subtract fees+shipping costs+cost of items. It's not perfect but my tax guy said it should be fine if SSA ever questions me. The whole system is so confusing though!!!!

One additional tip based on your target amount of $4,000: Make sure you understand how your benefit might be affected by Medicare premiums if you're enrolling in that at the same time. Also, depending on your other income in retirement, up to 85% of your Social Security might be taxable, which could affect your net monthly amount.

wait a minute my uncle always told me that the computer system automsticly calculates your amount when u turn exact age?? so maybe im wrong about what I said before??

If your sister needs to talk to someone at Social Security about the transition or has questions, good luck getting through on the phone! I spent THREE DAYS trying to get through to a real person when my husband was transitioning. So frustrating!!!

My brother just went thru this! Something no one mentioned yet - he had to decide about Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) when he turned 65 even though he already had Medicare from SSDI. Apparently there's some special enrollment period when you turn 65 even if you already have Medicare!

One other thing your sister should know - the survivor benefit is 100% of what he was receiving ONLY if she waits until her FRA. If she takes it early (even a month early), it's permanently reduced. The reduction can be as much as 28.5% if taken at age 60. And don't forget to ask about disabled widow benefits if she's disabled herself - different rules apply. The emotional toll of all this paperwork and decisions while grieving is just awful. Please encourage her to get everything in order now while he can help. Maybe even set up a specific file with all the documents she'll need later.

Something important that hasn't been mentioned yet: She should ask about her husband establishing a "protective filing date" for his SSDI application as soon as possible, even before they have all documentation ready. This preserves an earlier entitlement date, which could affect backpay and Medicare eligibility. And when the time comes for her survivor benefits, she should specifically mention the "LSDP" (Lump Sum Death Payment) - it's only $255 but many people don't know to ask for it. Also, she should inquire about her eligibility for disabled widow's benefits if she has any disability herself, as different rules apply. Finally, I'd suggest both of them look into setting up my.ssa.gov accounts now if they haven't already.

i thought the earnings limit was $18,240? thats what my friend told me when i was thinking about applying early

Thanks everyone for the helpful information! I'll wait for the mid-October announcement before finalizing my work plans for next year. And I'll definitely check out those email updates. It's frustrating that they make this so complicated, but at least I understand it better now.

Based on your additional information, I'm confident what you're experiencing is the RIB-LIM rule (Retirement Insurance Benefit Limitation) that the other commenter mentioned. This isn't the WEP/GPO your neighbor referred to.The good news is your strategy of taking survivors benefits now and switching to your own retirement benefit at 70 is still a smart approach. Your own retirement benefit will continue growing with delayed retirement credits until 70, completely unaffected by your current survivors benefit.Once you reach 70, if your own benefit is higher than the survivors benefit, you'll automatically be switched to the higher amount.

Thank you for confirming! That makes me feel better about my strategy. I'll definitely keep my plan to switch at 70 since my own benefit should be higher by then with the delayed credits. Now I at least understand why the initial amount was lower than expected.

Applying earlier has several advantages: 1. It gives SSA more time to process your application (important if there are any complications) 2. If any documents are missing, you have time to provide them without delaying your payments 3. It allows for better financial planning as you'll get your approval before your intended start date 4. If there are any issues or questions about maximum family benefits or other calculations, they can be resolved before payments begin There's no downside to applying early within that 4-month window. Just be very clear about which month you want benefits to begin. The default is usually the earliest possible month, but you can specify a later month if that fits your financial planning better.

Yes, you'll both need your own my Social Security accounts. Each person needs their own account authenticated with their own personal information for security reasons. The online system will allow you to link the applications during the process, but your wife will need to complete parts of her application herself through her own account. Make sure you both have accounts set up before you start the application process - it will make things much smoother!