I visited here with a question last week but would like to re-frame it slightly. I am 67 years old and continue to work. This past April I filed/suspended my application for social security benefits. My 62 year young wife has filed for SS disability and the applications is in process. It is my understanding that if her application is approved, payment would be made to her retroactive to the date of application but that it could take up to 6 months to get through the approval process. If I now withdraw my application from this past April, can I then immediately apply for spousal benefits while her SS disability application is still pending approval? Would my application for spousal benefits be held in ambience pending her application being approved and would I possible be protecting my right to retroactive payment to the date of my submittal under this strategy?

Thanks,
Roger

PS. The response to my last week's question was very helpful.

Hi Roger,

Yes, you could withdraw your application and file for spousal benefits instead, but your wife's claim would have to be approved in order for you to be eligible. Also, there is a special formula for computing family maximum benefits on disability accounts that may limit what you could receive as a spouse.

Alternatively, your wife could file for reduced retirement benefits while her disability claim is pending in order to permit you to be eligible for spousal benefits, assuming that you do withdraw your retirement application. If your wife files for reduced retirement benefits and is later approved for disability benefits, Social Security will recalculate her benefit rate to remove the age reduction for all months that she was also entitled to disability benefits. Entitlement to disability benefits does not start until 5 full months after the onset of the disability, though. For months of dual entitlement to both reduced retirement and disability benefits, only one benefit is paid, which is normally the higher disability benefit.

Which of the above strategies is best depends partly on your benefit rates, but mostly on your personal preference. If your wife files for reduced retirement benefits and is not approved for disability, she'll be stuck with a permanently reduced benefit. But, it would enable you to receive unreduced spousal benefits that you would not otherwise be able to draw, at least unless she is approved for disability. And, you would need to withdraw your application for retirement benefits before you could be approved for a full spousal benefit. There are limits on retroactivity for all types of Social Security benefits, so your filing date could be important.

Best, Jerry