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One more thing - be careful about the earnings limit while getting survivor benefits before FRA. But since you're 66 and FRA for survivor benefits is currently 66, you should be past that problem. Just mentioning it for others reading this thread who might be younger.
Good point about the earnings limit. For those who don't know: if you're receiving survivor benefits and are under your FRA, you can only earn up to a certain amount ($21,240 in 2023) before they start temporarily reducing your benefit. But once you reach FRA (like the original poster has), there's no earnings limit - you can earn any amount without affecting your benefits.
Something else to consider - since you've been self-employed, make sure all your tax returns accurately reported your self-employment income on Schedule SE. I've seen cases where self-employed people accidentally underreported their income to SSA (while correctly reporting it to IRS), which reduced their Social Security benefits later. If you find any reporting errors from past years, you generally have 3 years, 3 months, and 15 days from the year in question to correct them. So you can't fix very old issues, but more recent ones might be fixable.
I've always been careful with my Schedule SE since accounting is my business, but that's a good reminder. I'll double-check my recent returns just to be sure everything was reported correctly. Thank you!
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My husband and I went through something similar!!! The withdrawal form was soooo confusing and when we submitted it they said it was filled out wrong. They made us redo EVERYTHING and it took almost 3 months to process!! Meanwhile they kept depositing money we knew we'd have to pay back and it was so stressful!!! Just warning you it might not be quick or easy!!!
This is why I recommend sitting down with an SSA representative when filling out Form SSA-521. They can ensure everything is filled out correctly the first time, which helps avoid the scenario you experienced.
Thank you all for the helpful responses. After reading your comments and doing more research, I think we're going to schedule an appointment at our local SSA office to go through all the calculations. Since I'm still within that 12-month window, we have some time to make the decision. I'm leaning toward the withdrawal since we both have longevity in our families (parents lived to late 80s/early 90s), but we need to make sure we understand all the implications for my wife's benefits and whether she should file on her own record in the meantime (she worked as a teacher for about 15 years).
That's a wise approach. Since your wife worked as a teacher, you should also ask specifically about the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) if she's eligible for a pension from that work. These can significantly affect Social Security benefits and must be factored into your calculations. Good luck with your decision!
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wait hold up - ur saying u can collect SSDI and then switch to regular SS later?? does that mean u get two checks?? i'm confused how that works
No, you don't get two checks. When you reach Full Retirement Age (FRA), your SSDI benefits automatically convert to retirement benefits, usually at the exact same amount. It's just an administrative change on SSA's end - your benefit amount typically stays the same and you continue getting one monthly payment. The advantage is that taking SSDI early (if you qualify) doesn't reduce your benefit amount like taking early retirement would. So you avoid the early filing reduction that would normally apply if you took retirement benefits before your FRA.
Something nobody's mentioned yet: if you have enough work credits and are approved for SSDI, you'll automatically qualify for Medicare after 24 months of receiving SSDI benefits, regardless of your age. This could be really important if you're losing employer health insurance and aren't yet 65. In my case, this was almost as valuable as the SSDI payments themselves. Also, have you looked into whether your employer's long-term disability insurance might cover you? Many people don't realize they have LTD through their job that could help bridge the gap while waiting for SSDI approval (which can take many months).
The Medicare info is SO important - thank you! I was actually really worried about health insurance between retirement and 65. I hadn't even thought about checking my employer's LTD policy. I'll look into that right away. The early retirement package includes 18 months of subsidized COBRA, but after that I'd be on my own until Medicare eligibility.
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Make sure u bring id also they asked me for 2 forms of id when i went!!
Thanks for the reminder! I'll definitely bring my driver's license and passport just to be safe.
Did anyone else notice how complicated our system is?! Why should someone have to jump through all these hoops just to get benefits they're entitled to? Two deceased ex-spouses, early vs. full retirement age rules, documentation requirements... No wonder people give up or miss out on benefits they deserve. The whole system needs an overhaul!
I agree it's complicated, but to be fair, this is a pretty unique situation. Most people don't have multiple deceased ex-spouses with different benefit amounts. The complexity comes from trying to make the system fair for all these different scenarios.
AstroAdventurer
My sister went thru this EXACT situation!!! The SSA is SO CONFUSING with all there rules!!! They make everything complicated ON PURPOSE I swear!! She had to go to the office THREE TIMES to get a straight answer because everyone told her something different!!!
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NebulaNova
•While SSA rules can be complex, this particular situation is actually straightforward. The SSDI to retirement conversion is automatic, and one spouse's filing decision doesn't force the other spouse to file. No office visits are necessary for this.
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Keisha Williams
wait tho aren't you entitled to half ur husbands benefit when he files? my neighbor got her own SS then got extra $ when her husband filed for his
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•You're only entitled to a spousal benefit if 50% of your spouse's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA, which is their benefit at Full Retirement Age) is higher than your own benefit. Since the original poster is receiving $2,100/month from her own work record, her husband's PIA would need to be more than $4,200/month for her to receive any spousal benefit. This is possible but above average. Your neighbor likely had a much smaller benefit on her own record compared to her husband's.
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