Social Security disability recipient - can I get spouse's benefits at his FRA when he's high earner?

I'm not 100% sure on this but I think your entitled to either your own SS disability OR 50% of his benefit, whichever is MORE, but not both added together. So if your getting $2948 and his at 70 would be like $4500 a month, you'd still just get your $2948 because that's higher than half his benefit ($2250). But wait for someone who really knows before you take my word for it!!

You're asking about something called the "dual entitlement rule." As the previous commenter suggested, you don't receive your full SSDI benefit PLUS 50% of your husband's benefit. Instead, you'll receive the higher of the two amounts. Since your SSDI benefit is $2,948/month, and your husband's PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) at his FRA would need to be around $5,896 for half of it to exceed your current benefit, it sounds like you'll likely continue receiving just your own SSDI benefit. When you reach your own FRA, your SSDI will automatically convert to retirement benefits, but the amount generally stays the same. The spousal benefit calculation won't change at that point either. One important note: For spousal benefits, it doesn't matter if your husband delays until 70. The spousal benefit calculation is based on his PIA at his full retirement age, not the increased amount he gets for delaying.

I was in a similar situation but the other way around (husband on SSDI, I was working). What a lot of people don't realize is that the 50% spousal benefit is based on the PRIMARY INSURANCE AMOUNT not the age-70 increased benefit. So if his PIA at full retirement age is say $3500, then the spousal benefit would be $1750. Since your own SSDI is higher at $2948, you wouldn't get any additional spousal benefit. Also disability converts to retirement at your FRA without any change in benefit amount.

hope you dont mind me asking but whats TBI? is that why your on disability?? my brother has something with his brain too from an accident

The whole spousal benefit thing is SO COMPLICATED! My aunt thought she would get half of my uncle's benefit ON TOP of her own and was really disappointed when she found out it doesn't work that way. The SSA doesn't explain these things clearly enough!

I spent HOURS on the phone with SSA trying to get an answer to almost this exact question. Kept getting disconnected or waiting forever. Finally I tried a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA agent in under 20 minutes! They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent confirmed what others are saying here - you get either your own benefit OR the spousal benefit, whichever is higher. Since your SSDI is likely higher than 50% of his benefit would be, you'll just continue receiving your current amount.

One other thing - have you looked into whether you might qualify for SSI on top of your SSDI? Some people can get both depending on their assets and income.

Just to add to whats already been said - I know with my parents situation my mom gets a small "top off" because her own SS benefit was really low compared to my dads. But thats only because her own benefit was tiny. From what your saying your SSDI is already pretty high so you probably wont get anything extra when he files.

There's a key point I want to clarify here. When your husband files for Social Security retirement benefits (whether at FRA or age 70), you could be eligible for auxiliary benefits as his spouse. However, the maximum spousal benefit is 50% of his PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) at his Full Retirement Age. Since you're already receiving your own SSDI benefit of $2,948/month, you would only receive additional spousal benefits if 50% of your husband's PIA exceeds your current SSDI amount. For high earners reaching the maximum Social Security wage base ($168,600 in 2024, higher in future years), the maximum PIA for someone reaching FRA in 2024 is approximately $3,822. Half of that would be $1,911 - still less than your current benefit. Even with your husband's high income and maximum contributions, it's unlikely that 50% of his PIA would exceed your current SSDI benefit. Therefore, your benefit amount would likely remain unchanged when he files.