I looked if this was covered on CC but could not find a thread.
I am going to apply for SS at 62 and H at 66 this week. Has anyone done this online? I read the website but still have questions. Do you have to go to the SS office after you fill out the application? Anything advice that will make it easier for us? I applied online for H’s Medicare and it was really easy and has been a smooth transition. I am hoping this is the same.
We applied for H’s Medicare online and then had to go to SS office to get the card (for some reason a guy decided he didn’t like H’s forms and didn’t process them but gave them back to us). H returned the next day —state but NOT federal holiday and was able to get a competent different guy to process the same forms.
My recommendation is if you can, go on a state but not a federal holiday as H said the lines were MUCH shorter.
When I get my SS, I plan to submit online and then go in person on a state but not Fed holiday to verify. I was very unhappy that they never bothered to process H’s form and didn’t bother to tell us or give any reasonable explanation! He almost got a penalty for applying late since they just sat on his form for so many months!
I applied for Medicare before I applied for Social Security. I did go to the Social Security office for that because there was some kind of timing issue; they couldn’t have been any nicer or more helpful. There was no line at all on a random weekday afternoon. I signed up for SS online when I reached full retirement age. It was easy. It took a little while to get confirmation by mail but all was in place by the time my first payment was due. I still marvel every month when I see that $$ hit my bank account; I know I earned it but it feels like a present.
@Wellspring did you continue to pay for Medicare from a bank account, or did you then have it deducted from the SS payment?
As soon as my SS kicked in I had Medicate deducted from it. I still pay for my supplement out of my checking account of course.
I filed for social security online at age 62and had no difficulty doing so.
My wife applied on line last year for Medicare at 65 and deferred Part B (since I am still working and she’s covered on my plan), but they signed her up for both. It took many phone calls and letters to get it straight. Pro tip: Take a screen shot of each screen as you apply and print the final confirmation as well.
I applied for Medicare (also deferring Part B) this year and all went well – except that the confirming letter was an astounding mixture of inept capitalization, sentence fragments, and grammatical errors. I emailed the Regional Supervisor and actually got a phone call (!!) apologizing for what they called a computer glitch and thanking me for bringing it to their attention.
My wife applied on line this year for SSI at her FRA and did not have to go in, but they did require a phone interview (the scheduling of which was part of the online application). It all went very smoothly, but I did have her print screen shots as she went along just to have a paper record.
I applied earlier this year at 63 and had absolutely no problem. They called me and asked if I wanted to have it start earlier than I had listed on my app. They are very quick to process applications. We were also clued in by our financial advisor that my husband (66 years old) can file a restricted spousal benefit. This lets him receive half of what I would get at full retirement age until he hits 70 when he can change over to his own (now much larger for waiting) benefit. We are also doing that on line and it’s going well. He can do this as long as he was born before January 1, 1954 and has reached full retirement age. Check it out.http://www.annuities.pacificlife.com/public/salesmaterials/salesideas/23175.pdf I don’t think too many people qualify or know about this, but it’s an absolutely legal and straight forward way to let your husband’s SS payment grow but still have some money coming in.
Are you saying your 66 year old husband can collect half of YOUR full benefit now?
Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Then when he turns 70, he will switch over to his account. Check out my link. It’s very clear.
If he is retired, he can claim the spousal benefit rather than taking his own benefit, which he can allow to grow, but I’m skeptical of the assertion that he can get half of the spouse’s FRA benefit rather than half of the benefit that she is actually receiving. I am not a Social Security expert, so just take that as a mild case of raised eyebrows and a suggestion that people examine this carefully. The document at the link says he can do so since he is at FRA himself, but there is no citation to a statute, regulation, or SSA publication. If true, this sounds like a loophole that did not get closed when they terminated the other “file and defer” tricks.
I would urge the OP or anyone else to think twice about applying for SS benefits at age 62. Depending on your age you are permanently reducing your monthly benefit by 25-30%. Also if you are still working or go back to work your benefit is reduced by $1 for every $2 you earn over $16,920 per year.
I was skeptical also and was doing my financial planning using my current benefit instead of my FRA, but research is showing that it IS my FRA. We will be finalizing this tomorrow or the next day by phone and I’ll let you know for sure what the numbers are.
Well…my current SS benefit is $187. But it’s going up to $203 in January…so half of that might not be worth it…but then again…every penny counts!
This is an example of what I find online regarding restricted spousal applications. This may be one of the few instances in which filing early makes sense for the younger spouse (and which the OP seems to qualify for). The wife needs to start collecting SS first so that the husband can then file on her account.
"the husband could file a restricted application for spousal benefits when he turns 66 next year and collect half of his wife’s full retirement-age amount (even though she collected reduced benefits early). At 70, he could switch to his own maximum retirement benefits.
Under the new law, anyone who was 62 or older by the end of 2015 (including anyone who turned 62 on Jan. 1, 2016) retains the right to claim spousal benefits only when they turn 66. Younger people lose this right."
Agree Trixie to consider the reduction, and we have. I appreciate the info.
On another note, by the above loophole plan mentioned, I figured it would take about 7 years in their example to make up the difference and start to get ahead. Does that even sound right?
I tried to set up a SS account on line to see my annual contributions and it gave me error messages. I called and actually got a human, who thought it was because we have our credit frozen. Dunno. Haven’t gotten back into looking into it.
@preironic , The example in that brochure is almost exactly your situation! I have studied Social Security strategies quite a bit and didn’t realize (or maybe I forgot) that the older spouse at age 66 can get a spousal benefit equal to 50% of the early filer’s full retirement amount. I thought it would be a reduced spousal benefit. But I guess maybe I didn’t know that because it doesn’t help me - my wife is 6 months older than I am. Current plan is for her to file at age 66.5 when I reach 66 years of age and can get a benefit as her spouse. I will wait until I reach age 70 to file for my ss… if I make it that far.
Can you explain this? Is this like the reverse of the nowgone “file and suspend”? I am older than my DH by a few years. Can you explain how this works?
@jym626, two things:
1 - The earlier SS example only works if both spouses were 62 on or before 1/1/2016, then the younger one can file between 62 and 66 (FRA) and once that happens, the older one can claim spousal and delay their own until age 70. Actually, it isn’t age that is the factor. The lower earner claims first allowing the higher earner’s benefits to increase in value.
If you don’t meet those age requirements, when one spouse files they are automatically given the higher of their/spouse benefit and that’s it for life.
This is not applicable to survivor benefits. I can claim my late husband’s benefits anytime after age 60 and let my own increase in value until age 70.
2 - When I first tried to sign up for online SS account, I too got an error message. Imagine my surprise to find out that when I called to report my DH’s death, they also marked me as deceased as well. Took some doing to arrange my resurrection 