I just wanted to update everyone - I followed the advice to contact my Congressional representative, and their office actually called me back the same day! They've assigned a caseworker who's going to send an inquiry to SSA on my behalf. She said they often see cases like mine and that having their office involved usually speeds things up significantly. Thanks everyone for your help - I'll post again when I have news!

I went through almost the exact same thing! $28k overpayment after Ticket to Work, waited 16 months for my appeal. What finally broke it loose was filing a complaint with the SSA Office of Inspector General (OIG) online. You can report fraud, waste, and abuse - and this definitely qualifies as administrative negligence since you reported everything properly and they told you to keep the payments! The OIG complaint form is at oig.ssa.gov and it creates a paper trail that SSA has to respond to. Within 6 weeks of filing my OIG complaint, I suddenly got a call from a supervisor at SSA saying they were expediting my case review. Ended up getting 75% of the overpayment waived. Also - and this is important - make sure you're not just dealing with the 1-800 number. Call your local SSA field office directly and ask to speak to a Claims Specialist about your overpayment case. The phone reps often don't have access to the same systems or authority that field office staff do. Hang in there - the system is broken but there ARE ways to get results if you know which buttons to push!

my neighbors ex died too and she got his benefits and bought a new car with the backpay lol

That's such great news! $530 extra per month is a significant increase. Just wanted to add for anyone else reading this thread - it's worth noting that if you remarry before age 60, you would lose eligibility for these surviving divorced spouse benefits. But since you're already 70, that restriction no longer applies to you. Also, this won't affect any benefits your ex-husband's current spouse (if he had remarried) might be entitled to - multiple people can collect survivor benefits from the same deceased worker's record. Really glad you were able to get through to SSA and get this sorted out!

we got a letter from ssa about the taxes thing. u can choose to have federal taxes withheld from ur ss payments if u want. i think its 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% options. might be easier than messing with his work withholding

This is such a helpful thread! My husband is in a similar situation - he'll be 67 next year and we've been going back and forth on this decision. Reading everyone's experiences with the tax implications is really eye-opening. I had no idea about the automatic benefit recalculation that @StarStrider mentioned - that's actually a nice bonus! One thing I'm curious about - for those who started collecting while working, did you notice any changes in how your coworkers or management treated you? I know legally there's no requirement to disclose, but I'm wondering if there are any subtle workplace dynamics to consider. My husband is in a pretty competitive field and I worry that even the perception that he might be "one foot out the door" could affect opportunities. Also, does anyone know if there are any advantages to applying online versus in person? We're pretty tech-savvy but want to make sure we don't miss anything important in the process.

Just wanted to update - I called the SSA this morning using that Claimyr service I mentioned, got right through to an agent who confirmed that the husband should absolutely receive those 6 months of retroactive benefits! She said it happens all the time that people don't know to ask, and that's why it's so important to have all your questions ready before you apply. Hope this helps!

I'm a new member here but wanted to share my experience since this exact thing happened to my mom last year! She filed 9 months after her FRA and we had no idea about the retroactive benefits either. When we called SSA, they were actually very helpful and processed the adjustment quickly. The key is to be persistent but polite - sometimes you get different answers from different representatives, so if the first person says no, politely ask to speak with someone else or call back later. My mom received about $8,500 in back payments about a month after we made the request. Don't give up on this - it's money you've already earned! Also, make sure to ask them to confirm the exact date they're using as the start of benefits so you know you're getting the full 6 months.

i applied online last year it was ok but then they needed more info and i had no idea until i checked my account a month later. they dont always email you so make sure you keep checking your mySS account every few days after you apply!! they put messages in there that you'll miss if you don't login

As someone who just went through this process myself at 67, I can confirm that the online application really is the way to go! A few additional tips from my experience: 1. Make sure you have your most recent tax return handy - they may ask about your previous year's earnings 2. If you're married, they'll ask about your spouse's work history too, even if they're not applying 3. The system will save your progress if you need to take a break, so don't feel pressured to complete it all in one sitting 4. After you submit, you should get an email confirmation within 24-48 hours. If you don't, definitely log back into your account to check The hardest part for me was just getting started! Once I began the application, it really did guide me through each step clearly. You've got this - and starting your benefits at 69 means you'll be getting those maximum delayed retirement credits. Smart move!