I thought I read somewhere that Congress might eliminate WEP? Is that true or just wishful thinking?

Update: I found the WEP calculator link and it worked! For anyone else dealing with this, it shows both the regular PIA and the reduced amount after WEP. In my case, my monthly benefit would be $2,285 without WEP but will be $1,786 with the reduction. My 23 years of substantial earnings helped reduce the penalty from the maximum, so that's good news at least. Thanks everyone for your help!

Something NO ONE has mentioned yet is that sometimes SSA will send you a letter saying what month your benefits officially start - keep this letter!!! You might need it to prove when you were entitled to benefits vs when you actually got paid. Especially if there's ever an audit or question later.

Just to add one more point of clarification - when the backpay arrives, the SSA-1099 will show the total amount paid to you during that calendar year. It won't specify which months the payments were for, just the total received. This is why it's important to keep your award letter that explains the breakdown of payments. Also, since you're asking about taxes, remember that depending on your combined income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + half of SS benefits), up to 85% of your Social Security benefits may be taxable. Since you're still working, this is something to be aware of for your tax planning.

Just wanted to follow up - were you able to make any progress with this? If you're still having trouble, don't forget that Congressional offices can sometimes help with Social Security issues. Your local Representative or Senator's office might be able to cut through some red tape if you contact their constituent services.

One more thing I forgot to mention - be sure to ask about retroactive benefits when you do get this sorted out. You might be entitled to back payments from the time of her death if you were eligible but unable to apply due to these documentation issues.

Quick tip that helped me: Tell your employer to report your retirement date to Social Security. My HR department submitted something showing my official retirement date, which helped SSA properly apply the monthly earnings test for all the months after I stopped working. It created a clean record of exactly when I transitioned from worker to retiree.

I went through this same thing back in 2023, and my experience might help you. What I learned is that SSA doesn't actually adjust your benefits in real-time based on what you're earning. Instead, they'll reconcile everything after the year ends when they get your actual earnings from IRS. In my case, I received my full benefits throughout the year despite going over the limit. Then in early 2024, they sent me a letter saying I had an overpayment and gave me options to repay it. I chose to have them withhold future benefits until it was paid back. So you might receive your full benefits this year, and then deal with any adjustments next year. Just be prepared for that possibility and maybe set some money aside if you think you'll go over the limit.

My cousin tried to apply for her ex-husband's SS and they told her she couldn't because she remarried when she was 58... have you remarried? That's a dealbreaker for ex-spouse benefits from what I heard.

Make sure you understand what "top off" actually means - it's NOT adding two benefits together. Here's how it works: 1. SSA calculates your current SSDI benefit (let's say $1,200/month) 2. They calculate what you'd get as an ex-spouse (50% of his PIA, reduced for your age - maybe $1,500/month) 3. You get the HIGHER of these two amounts ($1,500) 4. The "increase" is $300 in this example If your SSDI is already higher than what you'd get as an ex-spouse, you'll see NO CHANGE in your benefit amount. That's why some people apply and get nothing extra. Also, if your ex hasn't applied yet but you've been divorced 2+ years, you can still apply when he turns 62 regardless of whether he's filed for benefits himself.