I want to emphasize what was said above about the Date Last Insured (DLI) - this is absolutely worth investigating. MS cases can be particularly complex because the onset is often gradual, but she should focus on documenting when the condition first prevented her from working at a substantial level (what SSA calls Substantial Gainful Activity or SGA). Additionally, regarding spousal benefits - your sister would need to wait until age 62 for reduced spousal retirement benefits, or full retirement age (67 for her) for unreduced spousal benefits. If she pursues the SSDI route based on her own record with the DLI approach, she should gather: 1. All medical records documenting her MS progression, especially from 8 years ago 2. Employment records showing when she reduced hours or stopped working 3. Statements from former employers or coworkers about how her condition affected her work 4. A detailed written statement about how her symptoms progressed This documentation will be crucial if she needs to prove she became disabled before her DLI expired.

Just wondering has she tried applying for state disability programs? Some states have their own disability benefits that aren't as strict as SSDI with the work credits thing.

wait wait wait i think you guys are cofusing SSA rules. isnt there still something he can do with a 'deemed filing' exception? My friend did something like that recently. Maybe ask about that specificaly?

Thank you all for your helpful responses! It seems clear now that my husband can't collect on my record while delaying his own benefits since he was born after January 1954. We'll stick with our plan to have him wait until 70 to maximize his benefit (and my potential survivor benefit). I appreciate everyone taking the time to explain this - Social Security rules can be so confusing!

When my wife passed, they actually deposited an extra month's payment that I had to return. The rule is simple: the person must be alive for ALL days of the month to receive that month's benefit. Your father was alive all of January, so the January payment is correct to keep. He wasn't alive all of February, so they correctly reclaimed February's payment. One thing to note: if your father was receiving Social Security, you may be eligible for a one-time death benefit of $255 if you're his spouse or dependent child. Be sure to apply for that if you qualify.

sorry about your dad but count yourself lucky they only took back one month!! when my grandpa died they somehow took back 3 MONTHS of payments and said he wasnt eligible!! took my aunt almost a year to get it fixed and by then we had already paid all his bills from our own money! the whole system is a mess.

My neighbor started collecting at age 62 even though she was still working part-time and she got hit with that earnings limit thing where they took back some of her benefits. Make sure you understand that too!!! If you go back to work before your FRA there's a limit to how much you can earn (like $19k or something?) before they reduce your benefit. After FRA there's no earnings limit tho.

i got so confused by all the conflicting advice that i just went to my local ss office and had them explain everything. took half a day but worth it. way better than trying to figure it out online.

anybody know if military service counts extra for social security? i heard something about special credits but dont know if thats real

Thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I'm going to try the detailed calculator and also consider whether I might be able to do some part-time work to replace some of those zero years. It sounds like even modest earnings could help improve my benefit calculation significantly. I'm also going to try reaching out directly to SSA to get a more personalized estimate given my specific situation. Really appreciate all the insights!