Will My Disability Benefits Change When I Turn 65?
The start of a new year can be a time of concern for people with disabilities who receive Social Security disability benefits. It’s the annual search for Social Security disability age 65 legal help by folks who heard their disability benefits are changing because of their age.
Relax, and keep reading to learn about your Social Security Disability Insurance benefits and what happens when you reach retirement age. Spoiler alert: The benefits change, but you don’t lose them. Once you finish reading about disability benefits at age 65 disability attorney advice should be at the top of your to-do list.
What Happens To Disability Benefits At Age 65?
If you were to ask, will my disability benefits change when I turn 65 disability lawyer would explain how disability benefits and retirement benefits work. First, it depends on the type of disability benefits that you receive.
The Supplemental Security Income program pays disability benefits, but it is not part of the Social Security retirement program, as is the SSDI program. SSI is a needs-based program that pays monthly benefits to individuals in need of assistance to afford housing, food, and clothing.
The money for the SSI program comes from the General Fund of the U.S. Treasury. It does not come from Social Security tax revenues. Therefore, a person approved for SSI disability benefits continues to receive them regardless of their age. They must, of course, remain disabled and meet other program requirements, such as income and resource limitations.
Reaching retirement age does not affect disability benefits for someone on SSI. Things work differently for individuals receiving benefits through the SSDI program.
SSDI Benefits and Turning Age 65
The funding for the Social Security retirement and SSDI programs comes from Social Security payroll taxes. A person who works long enough can receive Social Security retirement benefits at full retirement age. Individuals who become disabled and are unable to work before reaching full retirement age may receive SSDI benefits, provided they have a long enough work record to be approved.
Because SSDI and Social Security retirement benefits are funded by Social Security payroll taxes, a person cannot receive both. When an individual on SSDI reaches full retirement age, their SSDI benefits automatically convert to Social Security retirement benefits. One month you receive a payment through SSDI, and the next month’s payment comes as a retirement benefit.
The amount of your benefits does not change with the conversion. You may get more in retirement benefits if you received any of the following public benefits while on SSDI:
- Workers’ compensation
- Civil service disability
- State temporary disability
Conversion to retirement benefits also means you are no longer subject to continuing disability reviews, and you may work without limits on your monthly earnings. If you have questions about the conversion of SSDI to retirement benefits disability advocate can provide advice.
What Is Full Retirement Age?
You may have noticed the absence of any reference to age 65 in the discussion of SSDI changing to retirement benefits. SSDI converts to retirement benefits at full retirement age, which currently is 67. Do not confuse early retirement at age 62 with full retirement age.
Although an individual can retire early at age 62, their retirement benefits may be reduced by up to 30%. Full retirement age is when you can retire and receive your full retirement benefits based on your earnings record.
Anyone born in 1960 or later has a full retirement age of 67. Full retirement for individuals born from 1943 to 1954 was 66, but it gradually increased. For example, it was 66 and two months for a person born in 1955 and 66 and 10 months for a person born in 1959.
Medicare enrollment typically begins at 65, which may explain why people confuse it with full retirement. If you need disability benefits legal guidance age 65, contact a disability lawyer.
