Hi Larry. Get What's Yours is an excellent resource. I am a Canadian, worked in the US, and eligible for US SS. You book is the first time I learned about spousal benefit and survivor benefit. And, I totally get that I max out my PIA via DRC to age 70yrs. But I have two questions. My situation: born in 59 (FRA 66y10m); wife is 8 months younger and has no USSS PIA; I was disabled in 2003 (a US W2 year) and generated insurable earnings/W2s in 3 years following accident. Two things remain unclear for me. 1) Do I apply and suspend at 66y2m, so my wife can apply for spousal benefits when she reaches her FRA of 66y10m or do I need to wait till I reach my FRA of 66y10m to apply and suspend, meaning that she can only collect spousal benefit starting at 67y8mos and loses out 8mos of spousal benefit? My reading of your book is that I have to wait till I reach FRA to apply and suspend and then my wife applies. 2) Can I apply for SSDI at age 65yrs for the first time and collect SSDI till age 70yrs and not undermine my DRC maximum payout? Is there a disability supplement that continues when I start collecting my SS at age 70yrs? Is the widow benefit based on SS + SSDI or just SS? Is there a disability credit 'boost' that I can access for the 3 W2 years following injury that would boost my PiA?
Thanks for taking questions. Look forward to hearing from you.
Hi,
Regarding your question #1, if you file for and suspend your benefits at full retirement age (FRA) or later, your wife would not be able to receive spousal benefits while your benefits are in suspense. Congress changed the law in 2015, so now spousal benefits can only be paid during a voluntary suspension if the worker suspended their benefits prior to April 30 2016 (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/suspendfaq.html).
The answer to your first question #2 is no. If you file for and are approved for Social Security disability benefits (SSDI), those benefits would automatically convert to regular Social Security retirement benefits when you reach FRA. You could voluntarily suspend your benefits at FRA or later in order to earn delayed retirement credits (DRC), but you couldn't be paid SSDI benefits during the time your retirement benefits are suspended. SSDI benefits are never paid for periods after a worker reaches FRA.
Social Security doesn't pay anything like a 'disability supplement'. Either you're entitled to SSDI benefits or you're not, and you can't be paid both SSDI and Social Security retirement benefits at the same time.
There wouldn't be any way for you to now get extra credit for the period of time that you were disabled in the past. Social Security normally bases your retirement benefit rate on your highest 35 years of wage-indexed earnings (https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10070.pdf), but adjusts the formula if the worker qualifies for SSDI benefits. Basically, 1 fewer year of earnings is used for each year that a person was entitled to SSDI prior to age 62. So, for example, if you had filed for and been approved for SSDI from 2003 through 2006, your retirement benefit rate would be calculated based on an average of your highest 31 years of Social Security earnings rather than 35 years. You can only claim SSDI benefits retroactively for a maximum of 12 months, though, so it's too late for you to get any kind of a benefit boost for those years now.
SSDI benefits are paid based on the worker's primary insurance amount (PIA), which is the same as the worker's full retirement age rate. Unreduced widow's benefits are based on the worker's PIA, but a widow could be paid less than the PIA if the worker received reduced retirement benefits prior to their death, or if the widow files for widow's benefits prior to their FRA. A widow could also be paid more than the worker's PIA if the worker earned DRCs prior to their death.
You may want to strongly consider using our maximization software in order to explore and compare the various filing options available to you and your wife so that you can choose the best possible strategy for claiming your benefits.
Best, Jerry
