Your Questions About Factors Affecting your Social Security Benefits
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by: albert.tobega
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Q: I own a business, but do not run it myself. Would I still be eligible to receive Social Security benefits?
A: The SSA defines the word disability as being unable to complete any substantial activity that will earn you a living. What is considered "substantial gainful activity" comes from the National Wage Index, which averages monthly wages across the board. The SSA considers an applicant to be working or employed at any time the that person "is the owner or part owner of a trade or business even if he or she does not actually work in the trade or business or receive any income from it."
Your business income may affect your social security benefits. If that income goes over the predetermined substantial gainful activity (SGA) level, the SSA may consider it a substantial income. The SSA determines this SGA level by doing a comparison of the income of your business to the income you received before you became disabled, as well as to the income of a healthy individual doing the same business.
Q: What will happen to my claim if I die while in the process of applying for benefits?
A: According to the Social Security Administration, if a person who may be eligible for social security benefits dies (this includes Supplemental Security Income), their survivors may apply for a Lump Sum Death Payment. This means that, if you were to die in the process of applying for social security benefits, your survivors may make a case for the social security benefits you may have earned after the waiting period. To do this, surviving family members need to prove that their deceased relative did or could have qualified for social security benefits in the month that they died.
Lump Sum Death Payment of social security benefits is available only to particular surviving family members. When making the claim, the family will need to provide information and records about the deceaseds social security benefits eligibility and application (if there was one). They will also request evidence of the deceaseds disability beginning at 14 months before the date of death.
Q: What will happen to my social security benefits, once I am already on them, and I die?
A: A person who has worked and paid social security taxes may be eligible for survivors benefits upon their death. In general, for family members to receive survivors social security benefits, ten or so years of work will be needed (though this does vary). The following relatives may be eligible for survivors social security benefits:
• A spouse, with full benefits when they reach retirement, or some benefits beginning at age 60 • A disabled spouse aged 50 or over • Unmarried children under 18 (or up to 19 if attending high school) • Currently disabled children who were disabled at less than 22 years of age • Dependent parents over 62 years of age.
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