Hi Larry,
I have a unique situation I have not seen discussed. I have collected SSDI benefits for 28 years. The last 15 years I have been working part-time strictly adhering to the Social Security work rules, $ amount per month etc. My FRA is 66 and 4 months, 2 years away. Will my benefit amount re-adjust automatically at FRA since some of my earnings cover the highest 35 years or will it continue to remain the same amount?
Thanks, Patrick

Hi Patrick,

If you're eligible for a higher benefit rate when your Social Security disability (SSDI) benefits convert to regular Social Security retirement benefits at full retirement age (FRA), then yes the rate adjustment would be automatic. But, it's very unlikely that you'll actually be due an increase at that time.

When a person qualifies for SSDI benefits prior to age 62, their benefit rate is based on fewer than 35 years of earnings. The younger you are when you become disabled, the fewer the number of years used. For example, the minimum number of earnings years used to compute SSDI benefit rates is 2 years, which applies to people who become disabled prior to age 25.

It sounds like you became disabled in your mid 30s, so your SSDI rate is probably based on an average of your highest roughly 10 or 11 years of Social Security covered wage indexed earnings. That won't change when your benefits convert to retirement benefits at your FRA. Your Social Security retirement benefit rate will be computed based on the same number of years that were used to compute your SSDI rate, which is why your benefit rate likely won't change when you reach FRA. The only way that your SSDI rate would increase is if your earnings since you started drawing SSDI were high enough to replace a lower year of earnings previously used to compute your benefit rate, and your rate should already have automatically increased if such an increase was due.

The only way that your benefit rate might increase when your benefits convert at FRA is if any of your earnings subsequent to when you started drawing SSDI occurred shortly after you started receiving SSDI benefits. Without going into excruciating detail on Social Security benefit computations, earnings that occur within a couple after SSDI benefits start can be excluded from being used to recompute SSDI rates, but could be used to compute the disabled person's Social Security retirement rate when they reach FRA. That involves an alternate computational method, though, which would only be used if it yields a higher benefit rate than the person's SSDI rate. That happens so rarely it's generally not worth mentioning. Suffice to say, though, your benefit rate will definitely not go down as a result of the conversion of your SSDI benefits to retirement benefits at FRA.

Best, Jerry