What Happens to Your Social Security Disability at 67

There is a rumor going around that on your 67th birthday, the Social Security Administration effectively fires you, that your disability check vanishes because you’ve reached retirement age. Now, if you’re living on a fixed income, that’s not just a rumor. That’s a nightmare.

So, here’s the reality. Your money isn’t going away, but the rules governing your life are about to change completely. Some of these changes are a huge relief, like never having to deal with a medical review again. There are even a few situations where your check may increase, and we’ll talk about those in just a minute. But first, the facts.

This is a transcript of our video. You can watch the full video on our YouTube channel: Low Income Relief.

The Automatic Switch From SSDI To Retirement

If you were born in 1960 or later, your full retirement age is 67. According to the Social Security handbook, the moment you hit that age, your SSDI, Social Security Disability Insurance, automatically turns into retirement benefits. You don’t need to file a single piece of paper. It is an automatic, silent switch.

And the best part is that your check amount stays the same. They don’t recalculate you into a lower bracket or anything. But there are a few things that could actually cause your check to increase, and we’re going to talk about those in just a moment. Usually, you’re going to keep that same disability rate because the SSDI rate is actually based on your retirement amount anyway.

Now, of course, they know when your birthday is. So when you hit that full retirement age, they flip that switch. Your status changes from disabled to retired. And that means that those medical reviews absolutely stop, which saves a lot of stress. Actually, their guidelines say that within three months of turning 67, they generally stop checking to see if you’re still sick. Your benefits are safe. You don’t have to worry anymore.

The earnings limit also goes away, and this is a big one. On disability, you have a strict limit on how much you can earn. Once you convert to retirement, those limits do disappear, and you can earn money without worrying about losing your check.

Why You Should Not Wait To Apply

Now, this does mean that once you hit your full retirement age, you generally cannot file a new claim for disability. That’s because the law says that you can’t be disabled if you’re already retired. And since you automatically convert to retirement at 67, you’re already going to be able to receive the maximum benefit that SSDI would have given you anyway.

But if you haven’t reached your full retirement age yet, if you’re 65 or 66 and you’re thinking, “Oh, I’ll just wait till retirement so I don’t have to worry about it,” you could be making a significant mistake. That’s because when you get disability, the Social Security Administration applies something called a disability freeze. This ignores the years that you were too sick to work when calculating your benefit.

Now, for many, filing that disability claim even one year before retirement age could result in a somewhat higher permanent check. So if you are unable to work now, don’t wait for retirement to kick in. Apply for that disability status right away.

And remember, you might be able to file a belated claim. You may not know this, but the Social Security Administration website actually says that they can pay disability benefits for as many as 12 months before you apply if they find that you had a disability during that time and you meet all of the other requirements.

Now, generally, there is a five-month waiting period, and then they pay the first benefit for the sixth full month after the date that they find your disability began. But that’s still a retroactive claim that you may be able to file.

We do have a sponsor that helps people file disability claims. If you’re interested, you can reach them at the link.

Situations That Could Increase Your Check

So now, really quick, let’s talk about a few things that could increase your check when it transitions from disability to retirement.

If your Social Security disability check has been lowered because you were also receiving workers’ compensation, those offset rules end when you enter retirement. So if you’re affected by this, your Social Security check will actually increase to its full amount because those deductions are no longer allowed once you’re a retiree. So, for some, this could be an automatic $300 to $500 a month raise that you didn’t see coming.

There’s another hidden benefit for your family as well. The family maximum, or the total amount that a household can collect from Social Security, is often higher under the retirement program than the disability program. So if you have a spouse or dependent children who are also receiving Social Security, their checks might actually go up once you hit retirement, even if yours stays the same.

Other Benefits Seniors May Be Missing

Now, of course, this is also a good time to check in on the other benefits that you may be missing. Seniors are eligible for all sorts of amazing programs, including free farmers market vouchers through the SFMNP, as well as property tax deductions and so much more.

We have tons of videos on all of this, so please go make sure that you check out our other videos for benefits you may be missing. And we’ll be back soon with more ways that you can save money and get free stuff. I’ll see you there.