Can my friend collect her Social Security while her working husband has cancer, or will his income reduce her benefits?
I need advice about a complicated Social Security situation for my friend. She's 65 and barely worked throughout her life (currently works just 1 day per week). Her husband is 66, still working full-time making good money, but unfortunately has cancer. I understand she'll eventually get widow's benefits if he passes, but here's my question: can she claim HER OWN Social Security benefits right now without being penalized due to her husband's income? I was thinking she could take her benefits now and just save that money, since when he passes, her smaller benefit would be replaced by the widow's benefit anyway. Would SSA reduce her benefit because her husband's income is over the earnings limit? Or does his income only affect HIS benefits? Seems like she might as well collect what she can now and bank it for the future. Would appreciate any guidance on this situation!
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QuantumQueen
Your thinking is actually on the right track! Her husband's earnings will NOT affect HER retirement benefits. The earnings test only applies to the person who is working. Since your friend is 65 (which I assume is her Full Retirement Age or close to it) and only works one day a week, she should be under the earnings limit for her own work. She can absolutely file for her own retirement benefits now, and then if her husband passes away, she can switch to the higher widow's benefit at that time. This is a smart strategy in her situation - collect what she's earned while she can.
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Mateo Martinez
•Thank you so much for confirming! That's a relief to hear. One follow-up question - does she need to provide her husband's income information when she applies for her benefits, or is that completely separate?
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Aisha Rahman
I was in almost this exact situation last year. My husband was still working while battling lymphoma (he's thankfully in remission now), and I started collecting my own SS at 65 even though it was small. The SSA only cared about MY income, not his. When I called to set up my benefits, I kept getting disconnected after waiting for hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA agent in under 10 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU showing how it works. Saved me so much frustration during an already stressful time. Your friend should definitely apply for her benefits now - no reason to leave that money on the table!
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Ethan Wilson
•Was it complicated to apply? I've heard horror stories about the paperwork and I'm worried about my mom trying to do this herself with everything else going on.
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Yuki Sato
Just to clarify an important technical point - since your friend is 65, she's probably at or very close to her Full Retirement Age (FRA) depending on her birth year. At FRA, the earnings test no longer applies to HER earnings. Her husband's earnings have NEVER affected her benefit amount - that's a common misconception. Also, she should be aware of potential tax implications. If their combined income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + half of Social Security benefits) exceeds $32,000, up to 85% of her Social Security benefits could be taxable. This doesn't mean she shouldn't claim, just something to plan for.
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Mateo Martinez
•That's really helpful to know about the tax situation. They do file jointly, so I'll make sure she knows her benefits might be taxable based on their combined income. Thank you!
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Carmen Flores
my wife started taking hers at 64 when i was still working no problem. they only care about the person getting the checks earnings not the spouse. smart to take it now and bank it
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Andre Dubois
I'm so sorry about your friend's husband. My uncle went through something similar last year. Hope he beats the cancer. 💔
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Mateo Martinez
•Thank you for the kind words. They're staying positive and taking it day by day.
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CyberSamurai
THE SSA DOESN'T TELL PEOPLE THIS STUFF ON PURPOSE!!!! They WANT people to miss out on benefits they're entitled to. Your friend should ABSOLUTELY file for her benefits RIGHT NOW. And make sure she asks about retroactive benefits too - she might be able to get up to 6 months of payments from before she applies!!! Don't trust the SSA to volunteer this information either - they are trained to save the government money not help YOU!!!
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Yuki Sato
•Just a small correction - since she's already past Full Retirement Age, she could potentially get up to 6 months of retroactive benefits, but not if she's under FRA. And while the SSA system can be frustrating, most representatives do try to help claimants get all the benefits they're entitled to receive.
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Ethan Wilson
I'm sooooo confused about all this SSI, SSDI, retirement benefit stuff. My mom is in her 60s and I'm trying to help her figure it out too. If your friend didn't work much, will she even get enough SS to be worth applying? My mom worked on and off and they told her she'd only get like $450 a month which seems so low. Are there different programs she should apply for instead?
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QuantumQueen
•Just to clarify, SSI (Supplemental Security Income) is different from retirement benefits. SSI is needs-based for people with limited income and resources. Your mom and OP's friend would be applying for retirement benefits based on their work records. Even if the benefit is small, it's still worth claiming - that's $5,400 per year that would otherwise be left unclaimed. No special programs for this situation, but the strategy of claiming her own benefit now and switching to widow's benefits later (if needed) is the right approach.
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Andre Dubois
Sending prayers for your friend's husband 🙏
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CyberSamurai
And make SURE your friend doesn't just apply online!!! The SSA website won't tell her about all her options!!! She needs to TALK to a representative directly and ask specifically about the "restricted application" strategy!!! Don't let them rush her off the phone!!!
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Yuki Sato
•Just a clarification: the "restricted application" strategy is only available to people born before January 2, 1954, and it allowed people to claim just spousal benefits while their own retirement benefit grew. Based on the ages mentioned, your friend's friend likely doesn't qualify for this specific strategy. But speaking with a representative is still good advice to understand all options.
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Mateo Martinez
Thank you all SO much for the helpful responses! I'll definitely tell my friend to apply for her benefits now and not worry about her husband's income affecting her checks. And I'll warn her about the potential tax implications too. It's such a relief to have clear answers - this has been causing so much unnecessary stress during an already difficult time.
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Aisha Rahman
•You're very welcome! One more thing - have her create a my Social Security account at ssa.gov before applying. She can see her estimated benefit amount there, and it makes the application process smoother. Wishing her and her husband all the best during this challenging time.
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