Working while on SSDI at age 66 - what's my monthly earnings limit before FRA in 2025?

The 2025 monthly earnings limit for the months BEFORE reaching Full Retirement Age is $2,200 per month. Once your wife reaches her FRA in February 2025, there will be NO earnings limit. It doesn't matter if she's on SSDI or regular retirement benefits - when she reaches FRA, her SSDI automatically converts to retirement benefits. Until February 2025, she needs to stay under that $2,200/month or she could lose benefits for those months. Keep careful records of her earnings and report them to SSA monthly to avoid overpayments.

my husband went thru this last yr. the monthly limit keeps changing every year, its confusing! as long as she stays under whatever the limit is she's fine. they changed his from disability to retirement automatically when he hit his age

BE VERY CAREFUL with this!!! I was on SSDI and started working part-time thinking I was under the limit. SSA came back TWO YEARS LATER saying I was over by like $100 some months and now I owe $14,000!!!! They count GROSS wages not take-home and they count when you EARNED it not when you got paid. I'm still fighting this nightmare.

When your wife reaches FRA in February 2025, her SSDI will automatically convert to retirement benefits at the same amount. The transition is seamless and requires no action on her part. However, until she reaches FRA, she must stay under the monthly earnings limit of $2,200 for 2025. One important thing to understand is how SSA calculates the monthly earnings. They use gross wages before any deductions, and they attribute earnings to when the work was performed, not when she gets paid. For example, if she works in January 2025 but gets paid in February 2025, those earnings count for January (pre-FRA) not February. To prevent any issues, I recommend: 1. Keep detailed records of when she works and how much she earns 2. Report earnings to SSA monthly through her my Social Security account 3. Stay well below the limit ($2,000 instead of $2,200) to provide a safety margin

I just called Social Security about this exact situation for my brother (also on SSDI approaching FRA). They told me it took THREE HOURS on hold to speak to someone. I finally used a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in under 10 minutes! Totally worth it. You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU or just go to claimyr.com. The agent confirmed everything that others have said here - $2,200 monthly limit until FRA, then no limit afterward.

Wait isn't it a YEARLY limit not monthly?? I thought it was like $19,660 for the year in 2025 before FRA and then there's a different amount for the year you reach FRA. The SSA website is so confusing on this! Also doesnt the limit only apply if you're getting retirement benefits not SSDI?? This is why everyone gets so frustrated with this system!!

My sister had to deal with this. For her they did a trial work period where she could earn over the limit for 9 months (not in a row) without losing benefits. You should ask if your wife qualifies for that. It gave my sister a chance to test if she could handle working more without risking her benefits right away.

Thank you all for the incredibly helpful information! I've learned so much - the $2,200 monthly limit, the importance of tracking gross wages based on when work was performed, and even about the Trial Work Period option. I've written everything down and will discuss with my wife. We'll definitely stay well under the limit to be safe and make sure to report her earnings promptly. I may use that Claimyr service to get through to SSA and confirm everything for our specific case. Really appreciate all the help!