Withdrawing a Benefit Application

Thank you very much for providing FREE service to the community. Can a person withdraw an application for Social Security Disability during an application process and/or after the person has been approved for disability? Any deadlines for withdrawal? Should a form SSA-521 to be used to initiate the withdrawl (whether a person withdrawing before or after the approval)? After the withdrawal -- can the application for Social Security disability be reinstated, if my circumstances have changed? Thank you

Hi,

Hi Larry,Thanks so much for taking our questions. My questions:
1. I had filed for Divorced Widow Benefits but found a job prior to any award letter or date of entitlement..application still showed as 'being processed'. I sent a letter to SSA to withdraw my application and they said I would have to file a Form 221 for the withdrawal to be considered, regardless of status of application. So, I did file this and the application was withdrawn.

I am 59 yrs old I will turn 60 yrs old on July 5th 2020.I applied last week for my widow benefits.The benefits will start on the first week of August.After realizing that if I make more than 18,240.00 per year I will then have to pay back two dollars for every dollar I make over the amount mentioned.
I have decided I cancel my application.Can I cancel without getting penalized??
I plan on applying for this benefit in January 2021.
Thank you!

Hi,

Larry I need help.
I converted from spousal benefits at 69 then my issue starts I changed my mind, went to the local office where they tried to talk me out of withdrawing my application. SSA sent me a letter saying I had to send them the 2 month old benefits I had received. I sent a check for $5511 to cover Benefits and Medicare premiums December 6 2019. I have called them 4 times they have not cashed my check. I need this taken care of so I can apply for spousal benefits starting in September 2019. What can I do?

Hi,

I've recently been helping my mom plan her retirement and collect Social Security. She just stopped working last month, and turns 65 in one week. She automatically received her Medicaid card in the mail, which made me raise an eyebrow, as you have to apply for that.
It turns out, when she was 62, she wanted to apply for Surviving Spouse benefit from my deceased father. She called Social Security, and was told by a representative that she should apply as soon as possible, despite her high income at the time.

Hi Larry,
I have bought your Maximize my Social Security license and decided to file for widow's benefit at age 60 on December 1, 2018. I have been receiving annuity from United States Office of Personnel Management and they are now recomputing my annuity down to less than 50% of what I was receiving because I started to receive widow's benefit from Social Security. They are recomputing annuity amount from OPM to exclude credit for post 1956 military service.

I have been on SSDI since 2012 gettting 1284.00 per month. The low income qualified me for Medicare/Medicaid which covered all of my medical bills which were prettty minor. Three months ago I applied for my deceased ex-husbands benefits and was recently approved which raised my income to about 2050.00 per month. I also at the same time have been diagnosed with kidney cancer which will mean major medical bills. Is there any way to cancel the spouse benefits for I can stay on Medicare/Medicaid. I am devastated.

A good friend told me started collecting benefits at 62, After he turned 67 he returned all the money he recieved and was able to start a new claim at the rate as if he just retired a 67? Is this still possible?

Hi,

You can no longer do what your friend did, but you can still withdraw a claim up to a year after becoming entitled and then reapply with a new entitlement date. In order to withdraw a claim, you must pay back all of the benefits that you received based on that claim.

I made a mistake in the sequencing of my application for social security benefits. I began receiving benefits last month at the age of 68. However, I will need to continue working for several more months, and the tax consequences of this situation will be burdensome. Do I have the option to withdraw my claim and reapply at a later date (rather than just deferring payments)?
Thank you!

Hi,

I took early retirement, using widow's benefits at a loss of 20% of the monthly check.
With the cost of EVERYTHING skyrocketing, can I get that 20% back w/o it costing an arm and leg?

Hi,

It sounds like you could withdraw your application and reapply at a higher monthly rate, but you'd have to repay all of the benefits you've received to date in order to do so. If you were receiving retirement benefits rather than widow's benefits, you could only withdraw up to one year after your original month of entitlement.