Collecting spousal benefits on husband's record while on SSDI - options at age 65?

Yes, you can potentially get spousal benefits even while on SSDI! The rule is that you can receive whichever is higher - your own benefit or up to 50% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA). Since your SSDI is $1,750 and half of his benefit would be around $1,450, you'd continue getting your own SSDI payment since it's higher. However, when you reach your own Full Retirement Age, your SSDI automatically converts to regular retirement benefits at the same amount. At that point, nothing really changes payment-wise unless your husband passes away, when you'd potentially qualify for survivor benefits equal to 100% of his amount.

My husband started geting his SS last year and I been on dissability since 2016... they told me I cant get ANYTHING from his record because I already get SSDI!!! The whole system is RIGGED against disabled people!!!! They never explain anything right and every person tells you something different. I spent 3 weeks trying to get answers and got nowhere. Its all about who you talk to and if they feel like helping you that day.

I was in almost the exact situation last year. Been on disability since a car accident in 2019, husband reached FRA and started his benefits. I called SSA and they did the math - since my SSDI was less than half his benefit, they added a spousal supplement to my monthly payment. Definitely worth checking into.

My wife got disability and I retired 3 years back. We found out she could get a small extra amount from my record but we had to actually apply for it. They don't just automatic add it! But sounds like your not gonna get anything extra since your disability is already more than half his amount.

After trying to call SSA for weeks about a similar situation, I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to a real person at Social Security in under 10 minutes! Was totally worth it after spending hours on hold getting nowhere. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - their website is claimyr.com. Saved me so much frustration, especially since I needed specific info about my disability and spousal benefit options.

There's a few important technical points that might help you understand your situation better: 1) The maximum spousal benefit is 50% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), which is actually the benefit he would receive at exactly his FRA, not necessarily what he's currently receiving if he delayed past FRA. 2) When you reach your FRA, your SSDI automatically converts to retirement benefits at the same amount. 3) If your husband predeceases you, you would be eligible for widow's benefits, which would be up to 100% of what he was receiving (including any delayed retirement credits). 4) There is no special "application" needed in your case since you're already receiving SSDI. The SSA should automatically evaluate your eligibility for additional spousal benefits when your husband filed for his retirement. Based on the numbers you provided, it sounds like you wouldn't qualify for additional spousal benefits since your own SSDI exceeds 50% of your husband's PIA.

My sister went through this exact thing!!!! She was on disability and thought she would get half her husbands benefit when he retired but she only got a tiny bit extra because her disability was almost as much as half his benefit already. The whole thing is so confusing and no one explains it right. They should just give everyone the higher amount no matter what!

dont 4get about medicare!! at 65 you need to sign up for that even if your on disabilty. its different from disabilty medicare and you could get penaltys if you dont signup at 65!!

Thank you all for your helpful responses! I've learned a lot and understand the situation much better now. It looks like I'll continue receiving my current SSDI benefit since it's higher than the spousal benefit I'd be eligible for. I'm going to try the Claimyr service to get through to SSA to confirm everything and make sure there's nothing else I need to know about how my benefits will change when I reach my own FRA. I appreciate everyone taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences!

Just wanted to add one important point that might help others reading this thread - when you're on SSDI and your spouse files for retirement benefits, the SSA is supposed to automatically check if you're eligible for additional spousal benefits. However, this doesn't always happen seamlessly, so it's worth calling to confirm they've done this evaluation. Also, if your husband delays his retirement past his FRA to get delayed retirement credits (which increase his benefit by 8% per year until age 70), this doesn't affect your potential spousal benefit calculation since that's based on his Primary Insurance Amount at FRA, not his actual increased benefit amount. Good luck getting through to SSA - the wait times have been terrible lately!

I went through something very similar when my wife started collecting SSDI and I reached my FRA. One thing that helped us was understanding that even though she wouldn't get additional spousal benefits (her SSDI was already higher than 50% of my PIA), we still benefited from having both our benefits coming in. Also, don't forget to consider the tax implications - depending on your combined income, some of your Social Security benefits might become taxable. It's worth speaking with a tax professional if your total household income is getting close to the thresholds. The survivor benefit situation that others mentioned is definitely something to keep in mind for long-term planning. Hope you're able to get through to SSA soon - maybe try calling right when they open at 8 AM, that sometimes helps with the wait times.