Given what you've said - he's 67, has memory issues, is unemployed, and you need the money - I think he should file right now. Here's my reasoning: 1. You're struggling financially - $2,200/month would help immediately 2. The memory issues create risk for a more complicated application later 3. He's already at FRA so there's no penalty for filing now 4. Your SSDI plus his retirement would give you about $3,950/month combined While waiting until 70 would give him an extra $528/month, that's 36 months of not receiving $2,200/month - that's $79,200 you'd be missing out on in the short term. You'd need to live over 12 years beyond age 70 just to break even on that decision.

To answer your question about survivor benefits: If your husband passes away, you would receive the higher of the two benefits, not both. So you would stop receiving your SSDI and instead receive his Social Security retirement benefit as a survivor benefit. This is why his benefit amount matters for your long-term financial security as well. Given your current financial situation and his cognitive challenges, filing now seems most prudent. The immediate financial relief outweighs the potential long-term gain, especially considering the administrative challenges you might face if his condition worsens.

A quick tip: When you call or visit SSA, specifically ask for a "TECHNICAL EXPERT" who specializes in WEP/GPO cases. Regular claims representatives often don't fully understand these complex provisions. A technical expert can provide a detailed, written explanation of your benefit calculation. Also, while it doesn't apply to your current situation, I want to mention for others reading this thread: If you're affected by GPO, there's something called the "Last Day of Employment" exception. If you were eligible for your government pension before July 1, 2004, and your last day of government employment was before July 1, 2004, you might be exempt from GPO. Always worth checking if this applies to your situation.

Based on all the information you've shared, here's my analysis of what might be happening: 1. Your own benefit may be correctly reduced by WEP (unless you qualify for the 30-year exception) 2. Your husband's PIA is likely lower than his current benefit amount 3. Your spousal benefit is being reduced by GPO The formula should be: Your WEP-reduced benefit + [max(0, (50% of husband's PIA - 2/3 of your pension))] If the amount in the parentheses is negative, you get nothing additional from the spousal benefit. The fact that you're getting some spousal addition means that 50% of your husband's PIA is more than 2/3 of your pension, but the difference is small. My recommendation: Request a "PEBES" (Personal Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement) and a detailed calculation of your WEP and GPO adjustments. Then make an appointment with a technical expert at SSA to review everything.

I'm in a similar situation but decided to wait. Financially it makes more sense for most people unless you have health issues or really need the money now. That 30% permanent reduction is significant.

To calculate your specific amount with precision: take your annual earnings over the limit ($34,000 - $22,560 = $11,440), divide by 2 = $5,720 annual reduction. Then divide your full benefit by 12 months ($1,800 × 12 = $21,600 annual benefit). Subtract the reduction ($21,600 - $5,720 = $15,880 annual adjusted benefit). Divide by 12 to get monthly = $1,323/month approximately. Remember this is before any tax considerations. And the earnings limit typically increases slightly each year with inflation adjustments.

Yes, the Government Pension Offset (GPO) would still apply to spousal benefits if you receive a pension from work not covered by Social Security. The GPO typically reduces spousal/widow(er) benefits by 2/3 of your government pension amount. For example, if your government pension is $3,000/month, your spousal benefits would be reduced by $2,000. If the spousal benefit would have been $1,500, you'd receive $0 after the GPO reduction ($1,500 - $2,000 = less than $0). This is separate from the WEP, which affects your own benefit based on your own work record. The GPO affects benefits based on someone else's work record.

The whole WEP/GPO thing is just the government STEALING money from teachers and public servants who worked hard their whole lives!!! My aunt lost over $700/month because of this garbage. Called her congressman and everything but nothing changed. Complete scam!!!!

Yes, PTO payouts count as earnings in the month they're paid for the earnings test. If possible, you might want to arrange to have your PTO payout occur before you start claiming Social Security. Another option would be to use all your PTO before retirement instead of taking the cash payout, if your employer allows it. That way you could effectively stop working earlier while still receiving your regular salary (which would count as earnings during those last weeks/months). But the most important thing to understand is that in your first year of benefits, you have the monthly earnings test option, which makes your pre-claim earnings irrelevant to the earnings test calculation.

I've been helping my dad with the exact same situation! For part-time work after you claim, keep in mind that if you're self-employed, SSA looks at both your earnings AND your work activity. Even if you don't pay yourself much, if you're working a lot of hours they can still count it as substantial earnings. This tripped up my dad who continued managing his rental properties after claiming. Just something to consider if your part-time work might involve self-employment.