Something nobody has mentioned yet - if your neighbor's husband dies before she does, her benefit would increase. As a widow, she would be eligible for 100% of what he was receiving (instead of the 50% spousal benefit). This is called the survivor benefit and is another way Social Security protects spouses who have limited work history of their own. Just something to keep in mind about how the program works overall.

Thank you all for the helpful explanations! This makes so much more sense now. It's amazing that married couples can really maximize their benefits this way. My husband and I are both approaching retirement age and I worked part-time for many years, so I'll definitely be looking into whether the spousal benefit might be better for me. Feeling much more confident about our retirement planning now!

my neighbor worked for SSA for 30 years before retiring and she always told me they never actually skip payments unless theres a problem with eligibility. have you had any changes lately? new job? inheritance? moved? sometimes these trigger reviews and they hold payments

After reading through all your responses, I'm pretty sure this is a specific issue that needs direct SSA intervention. One possibility is that there was an unprocessed Change of Payment Address (even if you didn't change addresses), a bank account verification issue, or a routine eligibility review. These can sometimes result in a payment being held but not necessarily communicated clearly in your online account. Your March payment being scheduled suggests you're still eligible, which is good news. I would definitely prioritize speaking with an agent directly.

Thanks everyone for the advice! I'm going to gather all our documents and apply this week. I'll try calling again first to set up an appointment, but if I can't get through, I'll try that Claimyr service someone mentioned. I'll update once I hear back from SSA about my application!

Good luck! Definitely let us know how it goes. The child-in-care benefit can be so helpful for families in your situation.

WAIT!!! Something nobody mentioned - if she waits till her FRA she can choose to ONLY file for spousal benefits and let her OWN benefit continue to grow until 70!!! That's what my financial advisor told me is the best strategy!!!!!

something nobody asked is what ur cashflow is like right now. if u guys need the money now then maybe its worth taking the hit. my wife and i did cause we needed to fix our roof. sometimes the math doesnt matter as much as what u need right now ya know?

my brother in law had this problem. he talked to his accountant who told him to set up an s-corp instead of doing schedule c. that way he could pay himself a salary under the limit and take the rest as distributions which dont count towards the earnings test. worked for him but probably depends on how much ur making overall

Update: I called SSA this morning and finally got through after trying for 3 days! The rep confirmed what many of you said - they look at net earnings for self-employment. She also explained that they'll take the adjustment from future benefits next year after I file my taxes. I'm going to track my hours and income more carefully going forward, and I might talk to my accountant about restructuring. Thanks everyone for your help!

i think yur overthinking this. just take ur own ss at 70 and forget about the spouse thing. my uncle got a teachers pension and his own ss and hes fine.

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I had no idea about that restricted application strategy being eliminated - I guess I was reading outdated information. I'll definitely need to look more carefully at the GPO calculator. My state pension will be around $4,200/month, so it sounds like that would completely wipe out any spousal benefits. I guess my best strategy might be to just wait and collect my own Social Security at 70, even with the WEP reduction. I'll try to get specific calculations from SSA using that Claimyr service someone mentioned. This is all so much more complicated than I expected!

does anyone know if theres a form you can fill out for this instead of calling?? i hate talking on the phone lol

OP - just checking in. Were you able to get this resolved? Any updates to share with the group?

Here's a trick I learned from a friend who retired from SSA: The best way to verify your family maximum calculation is to schedule an in-person appointment at your local office and specifically request a PIA/FMAX breakdown printout. This shows all the bend points and calculations. The online calculators aren't reliable for dependent benefits because they don't correctly apply the family maximum in many cases. Also, keep in mind that once your dependent child turns 16, your spouse will no longer qualify for mother's/father's benefits until they reach their own retirement age or become disabled. This catches many families by surprise, so start planning for that transition now.

Another thing to consider is that dependent benefits can increase over time. If any dependents stop receiving benefits (like when your child turns 18/19), the remaining dependents can have their benefits recalculated and potentially increased up to the 50% maximum. This won't happen automatically though - you need to contact SSA to request a recalculation when your family situation changes.

I went over the earnings limit by like $4,000 last year... i was so worried but then when i called they explained that they only take HALF of the overage amount from my benefits. So for $4000 over they reduced my benefits by $2000 total (spread across several months). It wasnt as bad as people say.

After reviewing all the responses, here's a practical summary: Contact SSA proactively to report your anticipated earnings. The reduction will be $1 for every $2 you earn above the limit. They may suspend payments for some months or reduce each payment until the amount is recovered. If you don't report it, they'll eventually find out through tax records and send you a notice of overpayment. The good news is that once you reach your Full Retirement Age, these earnings limitations disappear completely, and your benefit will be recalculated to give credit for the months benefits were withheld.

this is so confusing!!!! how is anyone supposed to keep track of all these rules and limits and trial periods???? and they wonder why people just give up trying to work at all!

Thank you everyone for all this valuable information! I've learned so much. I'm going to call SSA tomorrow to find out exactly where I stand with my Trial Work Period and get clarity on my specific situation. I'm also going to look into both the Ticket to Work program and whether any of my expenses qualify as Impairment-Related Work Expenses. Really appreciate all the help!