Why Did They Cut My Wife’s Social Security Benefit in Half, and What Should We Do Next?

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• Before you respond, verify that the letter you received is actually from the Social Security Administration.

• If you are suitable for advantages, your co -advantage may decrease without changing your overall control amount.

• If you do not participate in a change in your social security advantage, you can always apply for appeal.

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You rely on your social security controls to remain financially safe in retirement, so it is natural to worry about anything that can endanger any use of benefit taxes or the possibility of exhaustion of the program. Even if you have your own savings, no matter what a monthly check, nothing can overcome peace.

Therefore, it can be really worrying to get a notification that your help can be reduced to half. This was what happened to a married couple after he had been in Social Security for 10 years ago. Double took Reddit (NYSE: RDDT)Asking for advice about how to move forward:

Fortunately, their stories had a happy end. But it still caused them a lot of stress. What you need to know if you have received a similar notification about an unexpected benefit reduction.

Carefully examine the letter

In the case of the Reddit pair, they received a notification that the spouse’s wife’s social security assistance would be reduced unexpectedly. They both applied for the program ten years ago when they were at full retirement age (Fras). The benefit of his wife – equal to his partner’s retirement aid – was more valuable than his own retirement aid, so that’s the amount he received.

The letter they obtained said that the benefit of the spouse would be cut and that it was 60 days to object to the decision. The couple was confused and worried.

If this comes to you, the first thing to do is to carefully examine the letter to ensure that it is actually from the Social Security Administration (SSA). There is social security fraud and they always develop. It is a common tactical tactical that they use to deceive you to deceive your personal information, so that they can “correct” for you.

If you are not sure whether the letter you receive is real, it is best to reach SSA directly for the explanation. Do not use the phone number, website or e -mail address given in the letter. Instead, call and use the contact information of your local social security office online.

Understand the interaction between retirement and spouse benefits

When it comes to the couple in the Reddit Post, his wife Dualy had the right to benefit. This means that he is working enough to get a retirement aid on his own and has the right to get a spouse benefit because of his marriage. You may have heard that social security is only larger than the two, but this is not exactly true.

The truth is that if you are entitled to retirement aid, you will always understand. However, if you are higher than your retirement advantage, you can also get a part of your co -advantage. For example, assume that your own retirement advantage is $ 1,000 per month and your co -advantage is worth $ 1,500 per month. Social Security will give you your own retirement advantage and $ 500 for a total of $ 1,000 for a total of $ 1,500 per month.

The couple’s letter only said that the benefit of the spouse decreased. He didn’t say that his monthly controls would decrease, and after a little checking with SSA, the couple found out that this wasn’t.

Although Reddit Post did not go into details, this year’s woman’s own retirement assistance increased-perhaps as a result. Social Security Justice Law. This would reduce the benefit of his wife, but the new, larger retirement aid would make a difference, so his controls would remain in the same size.

If you think that’s what happened to you, it’s still worth following SSA to verify. You may also want to draw attention for more letters that detail the changes in your retirement advantage.

If everything fails, make an objection

If there is a change in your social security advantages, if you think the change is based on false information, you will have the opportunity to appeal within 60 days. The letter you receive should give you instructions on how to do it. You can also do it Learn more about objections On the website of the Social Security Administration.

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Why did they halve the benefit of my wife’s social security and what should we do next? initially published by Motley Fool