Question I am 66 years old and have been trying to delay my social security benefits for as long as possible, since I am still working part-time and do not need the money right now. I pay my Medicare B premiums directly to the medicare office, but I have recently read in the aarp bulletin that those who are not having the Medicare premiums taken out of their social security benefits may have to pay much larger premiums next year. I could wait until I get a possible notice of increased premiums and apply for social security at that point in order to avoid any increase, but my situation is complicated because I am now receiving social security from Switzerland, and I understand that my US benefits will be reduced because of that. I am afraid that there will be a long delay in getting onto US osocial security while the reduction is calculated. When I first applied for my Swiss social security, I had to go through US social security in Baltimore, and it took many months to even obtain the application. I had to go through my congressman's office to finally start the Swiss social security. I do not know whether to apply for US social security now in order to have time to get onto it before a possible Medicare B premium increase for those who are paying directly, or to wait, since I really do not need the US benefits right now. I cannot get useful information from the social security people or from the medicare person at Alliance on Aging. HELP!
Thank you so much for any advice you can give me.
Answer I would suggest you apply right away. You can request a "Voluntary Suspension" of your benefits if you want to delay receiving benefits in order to earn "Delayed Retirement Credits". If you apply and ask for "Voluntary Suspension", you can change your mind at anytime and request benefits be paid at anytime back to the first month you made application or any month in between. It cannot be requested by a survivor on your behalf. If you are married, your wife if she meets all other qualifications can collect benefits from your record while your benefits remain in suspense status.
