When do Social Security child benefits stop for my son after divorce?

Your son's benefits will continue until he turns 18, or 19 if he's still a full-time high school student. They don't stop at 16. As his representative payee, you'll need to complete annual accounting forms showing how the benefits were used for his care. When he approaches 17, you should receive a form asking about his high school status. If he'll still be in high school after 18, complete that form to extend benefits until graduation or age 19, whichever comes first.

my son got payments til he was 18 then they just stoped. nobody told us anything they just stoped showing up one day so be ready for that. the month they turn 18 is the last check i think

Wait I thought children only get survivor benefits if the parent is deceased? Your ex is still alive but retired right? Are you sure these are Social Security benefits and not some kind of child support arrangement through the court? Just confused about your situation.

Your son will stop receiving benefits when he turns 18 UNLESS he is still in high school full-time, then it continues until graduation or he turns 19, whichever comes first. Keep every letter Social Security sends you! When your son is around 17.5, SSA should send a form asking about his school status. If you don't receive this form, call them or visit an office about 3 months before his 18th birthday. Also, as the representative payee, you should be completing an annual Representative Payee Report showing how the benefits were used for your son. Make sure you're keeping good records - food, housing, clothing, medical expenses, education, etc. SSA can audit you and request proof of how funds were spent.

My daughter got benefits from her dad too till 18 but she dropped out of school at 17 and they made us pay back 4 months because I didn't tell them fast enough! Be careful about that.

I'm going through almost the exact same situation! Ex took early retirement and my son (16) gets benefits. I found out that for benefits to continue past 18, they send a form called "Student Statement Regarding School Attendance" about 3-4 months before they turn 18. Then your son needs to have a school official complete part of it to verify full-time attendance. Also, have you tried using Claimyr to reach someone at Social Security? After wasting hours on hold, I found claimyr.com and their service actually got me through to a real person at SSA in about 15 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. It saved me so much frustration when I had questions about my son's benefits.

Some important points to clarify: 1. Benefits continue until age 18, or 19 if still in high school 2. Benefits terminate the MONTH BEFORE your child turns 18 (not the month of the birthday) 3. If your child has disabilities that began before age 22, benefits may continue into adulthood 4. For divorced parents, it doesn't matter who has custody - benefits are based on the retired parent's record 5. The maximum family benefit rules may apply (there's a cap on total benefits paid on one worker's record) SSA should send a notice about 3 months before termination, but don't count on it. I always recommend clients proactively contact SSA about 4-5 months before the child turns 18 to understand exactly when benefits will end and to get the proper forms if high school attendance will continue.

make sure your keeping the money seprate from yours!!! my brother got in big trouble for mixing the kids SS money with his own money. SS says you need a seprate account for just the kids benefits

Does your divorce decree say anything about these benefits? Sometimes judges will reduce child support if the kid is getting SS payments from the retired parent's record. Just wondering if this is impacting how much your ex pays in support?