What Happens to My SSDI Benefits When I Reach Full Retirement Age?
If you receive SSDI benefits, you may have questions about what happens when you reach retirement age. The truth is that maximizing your benefits – by striking the right balance between the two – is important to your financial well-being. While this is a straightforward issue, there are other concerns that are far more complicated, and an experienced Nashville Social Security disability attorney can help you with all of them.
SSDI Benefits
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), which is often simply called disability, refers to the monthly payments received by those whose disabilities stop or interfere with their ability to work. SSDI is calculated using the same equation that the Social Security Administration uses to calculate benefits for those who reach the full age of retirement.
Your Full Retirement Age
Your full retirement age depends on the year you were born, and it works like this:
- If you were born between the years 1934 and 1954, your full retirement age is 66, and you’ve already reached it. If you began receiving retirement benefits at 62, they were and will remain reduced by 25 percent.
- If you were born in 1965, your full retirement age is 66 and 2 months, and you’ve already reached it. If you began receiving retirement benefits at 62, they were and will remain reduced by 25.83 percent.
For each year that your birthday inches closer to 1960, your full retirement age will increase by two months, and the penalty rate will increase incrementally until it reaches 30 percent for those born in 1960 or later. The full retirement age for those born in 1960 and beyond is 67.
Your Disability Benefits
Your disability benefits continue until you reach your full retirement age – depending on the year you were born. Once you reach that age, those disability benefits will automatically be changed to Social Security retirement benefits. In other words, you needn’t worry about striking the right balance when it comes to when you should tap into your retirement benefits because your disability benefits are calculated the same way and will transfer to full retirement benefits automatically when you reach your full age of retirement.
One complication, however, could relate to collecting a new pension from a job that didn’t involve Social Security taxes, such as from a federal civil service position or from a job with a nonprofit. In such an instance, your retirement benefits could be decreased.
Discuss Your SSDI concerns with an Experienced Nashville Social Security Disability Attorney Today
If you’re facing a concern related to SSDI, it’s a serious matter that can directly affect your financial rights, and the knowledgeable Nashville Social Security disability attorneys at Raybin & Weissman are committed to skillfully advocating for the benefits to which you’re entitled – sparing no effort in their fierce protection of your rights. For more information about what we can do to help you, please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us online or call 615-256-6666 today.