Ask Larry

Can I Take My Husband's SS And Cancel My Disability Claim?

I recently applied for SSDI. Ity would be 1024.00 a month. Which isn't a lot, but my children are there for me. They kind of pushed me into that direction due to I have emphysema and mvp. However, even though it's not curable I do feel I can get better. I thought I will be this be cured and call the said and say give it to someone who needs it. I recently found out that i could receive 900 a month from my husbands SSI. Could I take that and cancel the disability all the way till I reach 67, where my retirement is 1,074.00?

Hi. I'm sorry to hear about your health problems. If your husband is living, then you couldn't file for spousal benefits without being required to apply for your own benefits at the same time. But, if your husband is deceased then you could file for widow's benefits and wait until your full retirement age (FRA) or later to claim your own Social Security retirement benefits.

You could also withdraw your claim for Social Security disability (SSDI) benefits, but you probably shouldn't. SSDI benefits are calculated at 100% of your primary insurance amount (PIA), and your PIA is what you'd be paid if you claim your Social Security retirement benefits at FRA. In other words, qualifying for SSDI benefits allows you to be paid your full unreduced FRA benefit rate early.

It sounds like you have a number of different filing options available to you, so you may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze all of your options so that you can determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry

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Posted: 
Feb 13 2022 - 7:38am
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