Applying for medicare or social security?

[Night Elf]

Have any of you done this with your parents? My mom told me last night that when I applied, I had to list every job I've ever had and how much income tax I paid. Is this true? Is this woman misremembering? She's 74 and was on disability for a few years before she was transitioned to medicare anyway. I think she's bonkers! I don't remember every job I've ever had! I can see my social security statement showing how much money I made each year since 1985, but it's sure got a lot of zeros from being a SAHM. She said she was able to list the jobs because she's kept every year tax forms since she started working. I haven't done that either. I'm not even sure how much we've saved or where they are, except for the last few years which are in my closet. I don't want to get old. It sounds complicated.

[Lanny]

"Bonkers" may not be the correct term...   I DO NOT believe that what she has told you is correct.  The SSA has information on someones past earnings, from Social Security taxes and Self Employment taxes that have been paid on their Social Security number. Suggest you look on https://ssa.gov/for information about how to apply.   

[Pawz4me]

The SSA already has all your earnings information on which your SS is based.  And I'm guessing they trust the info they already have much more than they would self-reported info.

 

So . . . I think your mom is confused.  Although I don't know anything about applying for disability, so it's possible she's confusing something about that process with regular SS.  Also, things do change over time.  Whatever process she went through may not be the same as what someone your age will encounter.  But my money is on the SS trusting their own records.

[Pegasus]

As stated, SS has your earnings history.  Now, your mom may not be bonkers; she may have needed to provide her own earnings history if her SS records were incorrect.  They do make mistakes!  This is why it is recommended that we review our SS statement annually to be sure it is correct.

 

If you trust your SS statement to be correct, you do not need to provide additional earnings documentation.

[Alessandra]

This book is excellent if you need details. I don't think anyone would be getting benefits if they had to do what your mother suggests, lol.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Social-Security-Medicare-Government-Pensions/dp/1413321046/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1451743110&sr=1-1&keywords=nolo+social+security

[G5052]

I don't think it's that complicated. When I've helped elderly friends and relatives, we just had a birth certificate, proof of citizenship if born outside of the U.S, and their last tax return. Maybe there are other factors here, but it really didn't take long at all.

 

You'd only need older tax returns and job information if you had errors in your record. DH did, and we were able to get it corrected. I have some zeros in years when I worked, but it was in the 1970's and early 1980's when I worked as a nanny/maid in the summer, cleaned offices, did security at college events, and graded papers. I didn't file taxes during those years, and it's way too long ago to expect any of my employers to have records if there were any. When they paid me they just gave me cash or wrote a check and never took out anything for social security. So those years are effectively not available.

 

Thankfully I have 35 years with recorded income and plan to keep working until at least my minimum retirement age.

 

Edited January 2, 2016 by G5052

[Night Elf]

This book is excellent if you need details. I don't think anyone would be getting benefits if they had to do what your mother suggests, lol.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Social-Security-Medicare-Government-Pensions/dp/1413321046/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1451743110&sr=1-1&keywords=nolo+social+security

 

That's exactly what I was thinking. Surely I'm not the only person in the USA who is unorganized about things like that. I'm worrying about nothing, probably. I have a long time to go before I qualify for SS or medicare. It was just a conversation we had and I couldn't wrap my brain around it.