Qualifying children

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on

I have children and their father has recently went for a hearing is waiting on a decision. I was told that the kids will qualify for benefits. I have several questions.
How is the amount determined?
What are the rules for the cutoff age to recieve benefits?
Do the children recieve back pay as well?
What steps if any do I need to take to set up their case?
If a child is 18 but still in high school do they qualify, and for how long?

Natalie (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:26 Permalink

I wanted to know if my kids qualify to receive ssi the father of my kids passed away 10 months ago and I don't know if he had benefits in his social or earnings I have two boys 1 year old and almost 2 year old ? I don't really know how this program works or what I need to have to be able to qualify ??

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:26 Permalink

Hi Natalie, thank you for your question. If your kids' father received SSI, your kids would not receive benefits as SSI does not extend benefits beyond the disabled individual.

After he's passed away, you could be eligible for survivors' benefits based on some factors and requirements, you may read more about Survivors' benefits here.

Jethro (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:31 Permalink

I am currently going through a divorce-at the very beginning stages. My son is currently 50/50 with my wife and I: custodial and residential are both split down the middle. I have found out that she is applying for ssi for him (he is disabled and has received ssi in the past). I am currently paying child support/spousal support to her as she has no job. Since we have 50/50 custody, how does this work?

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:31 Permalink

Hi Jethro, thank you for your question. Since your son receives support from both you and your soon-to-be ex-wife, he will still go through the parental deeming process to designate his financial resources. The SSA will deem an amount of financial resources for him and both your soon-to-be ex-wife's resources will be accounted for. If you'd like to read more about parental deeming, visit our Parental Deeming page.

Kyle (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:37 Permalink

My son is currently receiving benefits due to his disability. He is six years old. I am considering divorcing my husband and im wondering if my son's benefit will increase. I do not work as I have 4 children total, all under 7 Andy son with severe disabilities. The benefit now is calculated on my husband's pay. If I am unemployed beong his only caretaker, would they increase the amount? Is there a maximum amount allowed for situations like this? I trying to see how I will manage financially if I decide to go through woth divorce. Thanks for your time.

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:37 Permalink

Hi Kyle, the amount that you receive for your son depends on the deeming process by the Social Security Administration. They can only determine how much your son would be eligible for based on his financial resources. If you divorce your husband and your son no longer lives with his father, the deeming process could change. I suggest contacting the SSA as they can give you more information on how this could affect your payments. You can call your local office or the national number at 1-800-772-1213. Best of luck!

Sue (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:37 Permalink

My husband applied for social security disability almost two years ago and recently was approved. We have been legally separated for 18 months and will soon be divorced. He does not pay any child support for our sons and I have full legal custody of them. Part of our legal separation stated that when he received social security disability, I would receive payments from SSD for the boys every month. How do I go about receiving these payments now that he has been approved? I know it won't be much, but every little bit helps....

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:37 Permalink

Hi Sue, thank you for reaching out. If this was all included in your separation agreement and your soon-to-be ex-husband has started to receive his benefits, I would suggest calling the SSA with all the information needed to prove that this is indeed part of the agreement. I would call your local office or the national number at 1-800-772-1213. Best of luck!

Laura (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:38 Permalink

We recently were given custody of our 3 grandchildren. Two receive SS/disability due to autism. Their father is incarcerated, their mother is unable to care for them. Are the children still eligible for these payments or does it depend on our income? We each make between $60,000 to $65,000/yr. My husband is nearing retirement age, we both still work but any extra income would help with child care expenses that we will now have.

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:38 Permalink

If you retain full legal custody, there is a chance that the children will lose their disability benefits. The children can continue to receive benefits if you meet the financial requirements set forth by the SSA and if the children are adopted or don't have any living parents. For this situation, I would call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213 for more information. Also, here is a brochure by the SSA for you to learn more about Benefits For Children With Disabilities

Mario (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:38 Permalink

my father recently past and im trying to find out if i can recieve his social security cause im on disibilty and im his oldest child with the same medical problem he died from

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:38 Permalink

Hi Mario, i'm sorry to hear about your loss. If you became disabled before you turned 22 and remain disabled, then you could be eligible to receive survivors benefits from your father. Since you are already receiving disability benefits, I suggest contacting the the Social Security Administration to determine if your benefits would increase after your father's death. You can call them at 1-800-772-1213. I wish you the best of luck.

Idris (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:39 Permalink

Applied for adult disabled son in March 2014 ( lives with us ), approved 2 weeks ago and received a check for 6 months. My wife is the representative payee. a few questions... - Should we open a seperate account for these payments? Son has a savings account with a balance of $1400 - How should we maintain a list of his monthly expenses and show his share of expenses towards the household expenses? ( food, utilities, internet, TV etc ) - Would expenses like property tax, property insurance etc be considered, where he would contribute his share ? We are family of 5 adults, with 2 earning members. - What are the IRS tax implications of this money on the tax return, my wife and I file jointly? thank you Idris

Igg (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:39 Permalink

Hi Idris, thank you for reaching out to us. After receiving a large back payment of benefits, you will be required to open a dedicated bank account for the funds and the use of those funds have restrictions:
The dedicated account must be a separate account from the one that is sued for standard monthly SSI
Account must be maintained separately from all other funds
Back payments cannot be used to purchase stocks, bonds, CDs or any other form of investment
Also, all of the funds in this dedicated account can only be spent on medical treatment and related expenses, educational expenses (job and skills training included) and special equipment, skilled nursing assistance, home modification and rehab/therapy expenses.

If you'd like to read more, we have a great blog post, How Should a Representative Payee Spend a Child's SSI Benefits? that describes how the money should or should not be spent. Best of luck!

Tina (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:40 Permalink

my kids father get 1,700 from ssdi how much will his two kids get ?

D (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:40 Permalink

Hi Tina, A child can receive up to 50% of their parent's SSDI payment, but the actual amount varies case by case. I would contact your local SSA representative to get a more accurate number.

Dawn (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:41 Permalink

Hi, My son receives child/dependent benefits as I am on SSDI..He will be 18 next year but will still be a full time high school student. Will I still be the payee or will it change to his name?

D (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:41 Permalink

Hi Dawn, Your son will continue to receive SSDI payments if he's 18 until age 19 so long as he's enrolled as a full-time student at a secondary school.

Anne (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:42 Permalink

My ex husband and non-custodial father of our two minor sons told me about 2 months ago that he has been officially declared disabled. I was told the other day that our kids might be eligible for benefits also. I know nothing about how all this works. He pays much less child support than is the standard for two kids, always has, so some additional help would be great. Do I apply for dependent benefits or does their father who is receiving SSDI need to apply? If he applied for dependent benefits and is keeping the checks intended for his boys for himself, how would I find out, outside of asking him (which may or may not be a truthful answer)? I just really do not know where to start and do not want to cause any problems between the boys' dad and myself if possible but I also do not want my kids to be cheated by their father and find out later in life and be hurt by this. Any insight here? Thank you

D (not verified)
Thu, 11/05/2015 - 14:42 Permalink

Hi Anne, The case sounds complicated. I would recommend filling out an evaluation form and getting in contact with a lawyer to figure out what your options are with your SSDI applications.

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