Hi Larry,

I was born in December 1951 and my current husband was born in August 1955. I retired in 2017 and started SS on my deceased ex-husbands record. My current husband who is working became permanently legally blind in 2017. At that time we filed for Social Security Disability for him but later withdrew the application as my husband wanted to continue working. His work bought special equipment for him. As time as gone on he has been given less and less work to do and has decided to retire in January 2021. He will be 65 at that time. Is he still able to apply based on his disability ?

Hi,

Yes. If a person can potentially qualify for Social Security disability (SSDI) benefits prior to reaching full retirement age (FRA), they're allowed to apply for SSDI. Drawing SSDI is basically the same as drawing your full retirement age Social Security retirement benefit early, so there's no reason to file for SSDI if you're initial date of entitlement would be at FRA or later.

Social Security has special rules for determining SSDI eligibility when a person is determined to be statutorily blind by Social Security's definition. Statutorily blind individuals are allowed to earn more than non-blind individuals and still potentially be eligible for SSDI. Also, out of pocket expenses for impairment related equipment needed to perform a job can sometimes be deducted when deciding if a person is earning too much to qualify for SSDI (https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0410520010). So, depending on how much your husband is currently earning, he may even qualify for SSDI benefits before he stops working completely. SSDI benefits can even potentially be paid for up to 12 months prior to the month of application if the person could have qualified for benefits prior to filing for them.

Best, Jerry