The Benefits Blog

We emphasize SITUATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY in the NSSA® Certificate program, as all of your clients are UNIQUE. Your clients may be single, married with wide age differences, married with narrow age differences, divorced, surviving spouses, eligible to file a Restricted Application, public employees, ...

My client is needing to get income now (64 years old) and just applied for SS.  He plans on working and making under the $22,000 amount so he does not subject himself to the earnings test.  If he applies for disability and is accepted, will he get bumped up to his full PIA?

Yes, if your client appl...

Do you know that every one of your clients has a unique Social Security situation? As an advisor, it is crucial to understand the specific questions and issues that pertain to each client. The National Social Security Advisor (NSSA®) Certificate program focuses on Situational Social Security—helping...

Had a client inquire on behalf of a neighbor who recently lost her husband to COVID. The surviving spouse was told by SS that she in entitled to receive her SS benefit AND his because he died from COVID and they have been paying her both benefits since April.  My bet is that someone at SS made a mis...

Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and expertise in today’s meeting.  I just wanted to follow up with a quick note to see if you’d been able to determine the name of the form or report I would have clients ask for when they go into the office (or call in) that details their potential survivor...

Quick question regarding SSDI: I have a client whose husband died a few months ago. He was age 59 and she is 60, and they were both collecting SSDI benefits. The SS office called her and told her she’s eligible for an increased benefit based on her deceased husband’s record. Is this correct or is th...

We have a client couple who lived in Canada for several years and then moved to the US and have been living here for the last 10 years. The wife is a Canadian citizen with Canadian work history and Canadian Social Security benefits. She is working in the US and plans to work to get a 10-year work hi...

Our client was told by a Social Security representative that she would have to go to a Social Security office to apply for spouse benefits.  Is this true?  Are there any other options?

Spousal benefits can typically be filed for online. However, if your client is already receiving their own retirem...

If a client’s birthday is 8/2/1956, is his FRA effective start date of 66-4 months in December or November?

Full Retirement Age (FRA) is the age at which you become eligible to receive your full Social Security retirement benefits without any reductions. The FRA varies depending on the year of your...

We have a client who recently applied for Social Security online and after it was complete, realized he entered an old bank routing number and account. Do you know the quickest and most efficient way for him to get that changed? He isn’t starting payments until April, so he should have plenty of tim...