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Working while taking survivor benefits at 66 - how much tax will I pay on $80k income?
I'm struggling to understand the tax implications of taking survivor benefits while still working. I'm currently 65 (turning 66 in February 2025) and lost my husband last year after 30 years of marriage. I work part-time but my income is substantial (around $80,000/year). My employer provides health insurance coverage. I'm trying to decide if I should claim survivor benefits now or wait. If I take the survivor benefit at my full retirement age, how much of it will be taxable given my income level? Will I end up losing most of it to taxes? Does anyone have experience with this specific situation? Any advice is appreciated!
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Social Security Disability Earnings Limit - When does it change at FRA?
I'm trying to figure out the earnings limits for my wife who's on SSDI. She was born in February 1959 and has been getting disability benefits for about 3 years. She works part-time at a local bakery (helps with her mental health to stay active). Her supervisor just asked if she could pick up an extra shift each week because they're understaffed. I know there's an earnings limit, but I'm confused about when exactly it changes. Her full retirement age would be 66 and 10 months I believe. So does that mean once she hits that age in December 2025, she can earn unlimited amounts? Or does something change before then? Right now she makes about $950/month with her current schedule. With the extra shift, she'd be making around $1,250/month. Is that too much? Will they reduce her benefits? Really appreciate any help understanding this. We don't want to mess up her benefits, but the extra income would help with our grandson's college expenses.
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What happens when they convert her from disability to retirement? Will the payment amount change? My wife is worried about that part.
Generally, the payment amount stays exactly the same when SSDI converts to retirement benefits at FRA. It's basically just an administrative change in how SSA categorizes the benefit. The only difference is that after conversion, the work restrictions go away. However, if she's been earning enough to increase her Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) since she started receiving disability, there's a possibility of a slight increase. But that's not common and would typically be a small amount.
Update: I finally got through to SSA! The representative confirmed that my wife can take the extra shift since she'll still be under the SGA limit. They also checked and said she hasn't used any of her Trial Work Period months yet, which is good to know for the future. Thanks everyone for your help!
That's great news! Remember to keep track of her earnings each month just to be safe. We set up a simple spreadsheet for my husband's work hours that was super helpful when we had to verify things with SSA later.
Social Security WEP/GPO repeal - Do I need to reapply for spousal benefits?
I retired from teaching in 2012 and started drawing my Social Security benefits the same year. My benefits were reduced because of both the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) since I get a pension from my teaching career where I didn't pay into Social Security. With all this talk about the WEP/GPO repeal in 2025, I'm confused about what happens to my spousal benefits. When I applied back in 2012, they told me I was automatically filing for all benefits I was eligible for (deemed filing). My husband has always made more than me, so his SS benefit is higher than mine. Do I need to submit a new application for spousal benefits once the repeal takes effect? Or will SSA automatically recalculate my benefits because I was considered to have filed for both retirement and spousal benefits back in 2012? I'm 76 now and don't want to miss out if there's something I need to do.
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One more thing - print out a copy of the actual legislation repealing WEP/GPO and take it with you when you go to the SSA office. I've learned from dealing with them for years that many employees don't stay updated on policy changes. Having the actual law in your hand can save you from being given incorrect information. And if the first person you talk to seems confused, politely ask to speak with a technical expert or supervisor who specializes in WEP/GPO issues.
That's excellent advice, thank you! I'll definitely print out the legislation. Better to be overprepared than struggle to explain something they might not be familiar with yet.
SSDI application at 63 with long-term disability - Medicare waiting period question
My brother-in-law has been paralyzed from the waist down since a construction accident 20 years ago. Despite this, he's worked as a software engineer this whole time (amazing guy, seriously). He's now 63 and 4 months old and just found out his company is downsizing and he'll be laid off next month. He never applied for SSDI because he was able to work, but now he's concerned about healthcare coverage. Two big questions: First, if he applies for SSDI now, will he still face the 24-month Medicare waiting period, or would his disability onset date from 20 years ago mean he could get Medicare right away? He's worried about being 'penalized' for choosing to work all these years. Second, can he file for regular Social Security retirement benefits while his SSDI application is being processed? COBRA from his employer would cost almost $1,900/month which is just not feasible on a fixed income. Any insights from those who've navigated this would be so helpful!
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One thing nobody's mentioned - if he gets approved for SSDI with an onset date from 20 years ago, does he qualify for any back payments? Seems like the system should compensate him for all those years he could have collected but chose to work instead.
Unfortunately, SSDI back payments are limited to 12 months prior to application date, regardless of when the disability began. It's one of those policies that can feel really unfair, especially to people who tried to keep working despite qualifying disabilities. The system doesn't really have a mechanism to compensate people who chose work over benefits historically.
This is actually a common misunderstanding about SSDI and Medicare. The 24-month waiting period for Medicare begins when you become entitled to SSDI benefits, which is typically 5 months after your established onset date (due to the SSDI 5-month waiting period). However, since your brother-in-law has been disabled for 20 years but never applied, his entitlement date would begin 5 months after he applies and gets approved (assuming they establish his onset date as recent). If he can prove he met the disability criteria continuously for the past 20 years, the onset date might be set far back, but SSA will only pay benefits 12 months retroactively from application date. The Medicare clock would still start from his first SSDI entitlement, not from the onset date 20 years ago. Only time actually receiving SSDI benefits counts toward the Medicare waiting period.
This is so confusing! So basically he gets punished for working instead of taking benefits. The system is backwards.
Taking Social Security at 62 with a minor child - family benefits now vs higher payments at 70?
My husband just hit 62 last month and we've hit a crossroads with his Social Security benefits. We originally planned for him to wait until 70 to maximize his monthly amount, but just discovered something that's making us reconsider. If he files NOW, both our 13-year-old daughter and I (as her caretaker) would qualify for auxiliary benefits for the next 5 years until she turns 18. After that, he'd be locked into the lower payment amount permanently instead of the higher amount he'd get at 70. Our financial situation isn't great. Hubby works in mortgage lending (commission only) and his income has been really unpredictable the last 3 years with interest rates all over the place. I work part-time and we rent out rooms in our house to make ends meet, but we're still drowning in about $37,000 of credit card debt from when he was unemployed in 2023. I've run some rough calculations and think taking benefits now WITH the child/caretaker benefits would equal more lifetime SS income if my husband lives to his early 80s. But I'm second-guessing myself. Would it be smarter to: 1. Take the early benefits now, use the extra to pay down debt, then maybe invest afterward? 2. Or struggle through 8 more years until he turns 70 for that permanently higher monthly amount? We have about $195,000 in retirement accounts but really don't want to touch that. Any advice from folks who've been in similar situations?
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I was in a similar position a few years back. Getting those family benefits made a HUGE difference for us, especially with the debt we were carrying. But one thing I wish someone had told me - document EVERYTHING. Keep copies of all your application paperwork, confirmation numbers, the names of any SSA reps you speak with, etc. When my son turned 18, there was a mess with stopping his benefits that took months to sort out because the SSA claimed they never received some paperwork I KNOW I submitted. The system is so backed up and understaffed that errors happen constantly.
That's really good advice, thank you. I'll make sure to keep careful records of everything. Did your overall experience with taking the family benefits work out positively despite the paperwork issues?
Overall, yes, it was absolutely worth it for us. The family benefits helped us pay off about $42,000 in debt over three years, which gave us so much more financial freedom. My husband's reduced benefit is enough for our needs now that our expenses are lower without the debt payments. The paperwork headaches were frustrating but temporary. One thing we did that really helped - we pretended the family benefits didn't exist for our day-to-day budget and used them ONLY for debt paydown. Made it easier when those extra payments stopped.
Anastasia Kozlov
dont forget that survivor benefits and retirement r different things! my sister thought they were the same and got confused when applying
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Omar Hassan
AuthorThat's a good point - I need to be very clear about which benefit I'm applying for. Did your sister have any issues getting things corrected?
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Anastasia Kozlov
yes she had to make 3 trips to the ssa office because they kept getting it wrong! make sure u bring ALL your paperwork and be very specific about what your applying for
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NeonNebula
One important detail that hasn't been mentioned yet: When you reach your Full Retirement Age (66 in your case), the earnings test no longer applies to survivor benefits. This means you can earn any amount without having your survivor benefit reduced. Before FRA, benefits are reduced if earnings exceed certain limits ($22,320 in 2025 with $1 reduction for every $2 over the limit). So while taxes will take a bite out of your benefits at your income level, at least you won't face the additional reduction from the earnings test once you reach 66 in February 2025.
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Omar Hassan
AuthorThat's very helpful information! So if I wait until I hit my FRA in February 2025 to apply, I won't have any reduction based on my earnings - just the normal taxation. That's definitely something to consider in my planning. Thank you!
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