So confused about backpay spending!
 

Okay this is a long and confusing one, but I hope someone can help me here. First of all I know the back pay I get for SSI and SSD, I can do what I want with that it is mine (i.e. bills, paying people back, and current bills, clothing and entertainment - what ever I want to do with it), but my question is about the back pay getting for my son because he is my dependent. I applied for him as my dependent, so now the back pay I got for him had to go into a special bank account according to bank laws and SSA laws. Well I spent a bunch of money on him the other day and that is fine it was for clothes, shelter, and entertainment. I called SSA and I don't understand them and they didn't really answer my questions.

1.) if the atty didn't get his fees out of it (he did my ssd), then do I take the money out myself or do I have to come up with the money from another source? He said he would get a portion of it.

2.) I know about taxes, I am holding a bit back for taxes.

3.) Do you have to write checks for everything or use a debit card for it, or can we use cash? Can't I withdraw cash so we can use cash for purchases and bills? I mean we have receipts. I am not understanding it. The bank I went to, the lady was all in my business about how to spend the money and what I would be taking it out for, etc... Like she would not let me take any out when we need it unless she knows what it is for. Plus she said I should use checks etc...

4.) My child is not disabled (I mean I never applied for disability for him even though he has a tic disorder), but I did not let them know that he has a disability. Anyway, but he does have dr. appts out of town and there are no buses that run where we live for school, so I have to take him and pick up, so can't I use some of the money for transportation - i.e. cheapo car?

5.) Since it is back payment, then all the money I paid for him through out all that time, can't I get get money paid back from it? or pay family back for money they paid out for him for me bc I didn't have the money.

6.) I read that if you have resources by the end of 6 months more than $2000 for all assets including money in bank then you will become ineligible for SSI/SSD. So what the heck? If we've paid up on everything then how are we to use the money? Do we go out and blow it on stuff (the back pay that is). I do not get SSI future only backpay, he gets SSI backpay and future mon. payments. his Monthly payments will be for rent (i.e. shelter) & clothing/ appts. So what do we do there? They tell you to save anything left over, but if it is more than $2000 then we will get his ssi taken away.

Sorry for all the questions, I actually had more but I will post later. Hope someone can shed light on this. I know they will audit me/ him and the money we spent from back pay, (I read that somewhere in booklet I think) and they will want reciepts for everything, won't they? It is a pain in the butt! I am ready to have a nervous break down!

Can you maybe go to the SS office with your list of questions? Or maybe set an appointment with someone there. They need to address your concerns and questions. Here is a link to the SS website.....maybe the answers are there:

www.ssa.gov

wow I didn't know it was that complicated...:eek:

I'm surprised the atty fee wasn't taken out already... they usually make sure to get that - right off the bat.:rolleyes: double check on this before you give atty any money.


I think I would call or email the SSI / SSD and ask them these questions just to be sure you get the best answers.
If you can email then the reply will be your record to look back on and you won't have to take notes like with a phone call.
Or maybe there's a booklet with the details they can send to you.

Why not ask your attorney? They should know.....and you've paid them for their expertise. :)

Hi, they took attorney fee out of the first check for my SSD, but not the SSD for my son and SSI for my back pay. I was so confused and the SSA was making me more confused. I can't use the $ for a car. But I thought my money was for whatever I wanted to use it for such as a car or whatever. I am so stressed.

It's funny you should say that because I did pay them for their expertise, but now that they got their first check, they tell me to call the SSA. Ugh! I could cry! I am more stressed now than before the money came! Then there is the question about how I owe my roomie for the half I was supposed to be paying for the mortgage/ housing, (past pay) yeh they want their money, but are afraid the SSA or whoever will turn them into the IRS and they will have to claim as income. Tech it is not income, it is what I tech borrowed from them to pay it, but instead they paid it for me. Sorry, I hope you get what I am trying to say here. See the $3800 (for housing) pay back, I can take out of the backpay for my son as my dependent, I was told bc it is for a roof over his head. It sucks that the SSD is your money but tech it is the gov'ts money. I mean they tell you there it is your money money that you earned, but ssi is not, so the ssd is whatever you want to spend it on. The girl said they don't ask you for rec'ts but you need to know what you spent the money on. Nice huh, at least it is for the kid, they never said it is that way for me.

Thanks so much!

Do you know how much SSDI paid your lawyer already ? There is a cap on how much the lawyer's cut can be.......$5100 or $5400 plus their office fees. If the lawyer already has that much, maybe you are all set with him. A phone call to his office manager should clear up if there are any outstanding charges.

I'm sorry I don't know much about SSI

he got 5300 for my ssd claim. but now i got a letter stating they r entitled to fee from my ssi backpay and another from my sons bp on my claim. they made it sound like in the beginning like it'd be 5300 for the entire thing.

I think you are confusing SSI retroactive rules with SSDI retroactive rules. SSDI for your child does not have a $2000 resource limit, does not require a special bank account with specific rules about how it is spent.

Also, if the contract with the lawyer limited his/her fee to $5300 max and it was paid from the retroactive SSDI, sounds like the max fee has been paid. It would be paid out of the other retroactive benefits if the max did not get paid from your benefits.

I am not going to comment about the rules about spending retroactive SSDI benefits for children. You can read a great deal about it at socialsecurity.gov. However, I have always found it a bit odd that parents want to be reimbursed for supporting their own children. Although benefits can be used to pay for a child's food and shelter support, I just don't personally believe that your child owes you money for anything you may have spent on them in the past. If you were working, you wouldn't be asking your child for money.

However, I also don't think a minor child should be living a better life than the parent can. So it is a hard question to answer.

Read the web site. Don't confuse programs. Call SSA. There are general guidelines, but you may not find the cut and dried answers you seek.

They told me it was like Child Support, that you use that money to buy clothes, provide shelter for the child. So, in other words, don't buy him any clothes, or buy him any toys/games out of it. Just pay for it out of your own money. He is getting that money as my dependent to help pay for things. I am not getting much at all. As someone else said on this forum somewhere, they applied for thier children and it helps a great deal (obviously for clothes/ shelter). Tech, I didn't have to apply for him, I did it bc ssa said it would help and I'd have that money for that stuff. So in otherwords too, just let the money sit there and don't do anything with it, and don't even buy a car for the child once they are 16 with it either, use my own little bit of money for it?

I believe you need to talk to Social Security, go to your local office, and maybe your lawyer. You seem to have the programs and their rules confused.

I am confused because they made me confused. I already talked to 5 people there. I am done talking to them. I get diff answers.

Okay I read through all your replies. I'm not sure I'll get it straightened out
for you. But I'm going to give some a try. But not the way you have written.
IN words that I'm hoping will make sense to you. So if they don't just say so.

I'll try one thing till we get straight then a new.

First for paying rent or utilities. Anything, your childs percentage.

What it means is this. Say there are 3 people in your family that
you split the amount you pay for. So your rent or mortgage payment
say is 300 dollars a month. You are allowed to declare that each
person pays a equal $100 dollars.

1. So your son can pay the $100 dollars to the person that paid the bills
while you had no money, for each month they paid. He can't pay anyoe
elses rent. (In ths way, I'll give you another way in a minute)


Say you take your son to a doctor 4 times a month in a town that is a round
trip of 100 miles away. You can take the 100 X 4 = 400 X .045 (whatever
the mileage amount is) and then when you get this amount. If you would
like to pay somemore of your rent, you can use this money. Because it
technically is now your money to do with what you want.

a. You would just record it as, amount that I spent driving in say
June to speech therapy. Example.

I personally would figure out a whole month's travel, but you should do say
only medical, and therapies. Any thing that a parent wouldn't normally
have. No well visits either.

This will help lower what you owe the other person. But you wont be using
the backpay the wrong way. BEcause its now your money to do with what you want.


Next you are allowed to divide all utilities the same way. people in family
X amount = your amount to be reimbursed.

b. Once again after recording that you have been repaid this. You can
repay any bills you need to.


Donna

Groceries, household items, anything else that is legitimate.

1. You can only take out what you use for him. So you would divide
by number in your family again.

2. Medicines that aren't covered by insurance. You can repay yourself
at least a percentage of this. With a big back pay, the whole amount,
if you need to spend down.

a. But usually I would just do say 50%.

b. Gas to doctors appts. Same thing.


Hoping this makes sense.

You said something about personal money.

My son was older, but I would give him a allowance from his money, so he
could spend it how he wanted. I just had to record it.

If he needed that money in expenses, he just had to do with less some weeks.

Donna

SSI or SSDI?
 

Thanks for the post. Does this apply for SSI and SSDI or just SSI? Thanks again!

I would assume it would apply for both. I'm honestly not positive.

But the things that I talked about would occur either way. And if you have
to explain like in SSI, how you spent the money. You can justify it the
same way.

This is the main thing.

Donna

In addition to being told we could use the money to go towards a % of household expenses and the child's expenses of doctors, medicine, clothing, etc., we were told the money could be used for any activities the child participates in - swim classes, etc.

Karousel

THis would make sense too me. Thanks for posting

Donna

SSD Backpay
 

I signed up for SSD in november 2008 and my lawyer gave my papers telling me that his pay is limitid to $5300.00 plus expenses and that fee covers both SSD and SSI, as far as my son's SSI he gets that off me if I am qualified for him to get it, my lawyer has nothing to do with my son's SSI and so he gets nothing because he dosn't have to do anything for us to get the SSI on my son.
as far as spending the back pay I couldn't tell you, as that same question is what led me to this forum, I hope we can both get the correct answers at the right times. I will ask my lawyer when/if the time comes, sents I'm still waiting to here the out-come of my SSD case.

You are still confusing programs.

Your son is not disabled. Therefore he does not get SSI. He gets Social Security Disability auxilliary benefits on your record. And your lawyer certainly did do something that help your son qualify for benefits - your lawyer helped you get approved. If you were not approved, there would be zero for your son. But, if the fee agreement limited the total fee to $5300, then there is nothing more to collect. Read what you signed.

Read this link.
http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10076.html
There are general guidelines. If you want to read SSA's internal policies, try reading all of this link:
https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.n...category=02006

I would not rely on anonymous instructions from internet strangers.

And remember, that your son does not get SSI. Ignore all the sections about SSI.

well the attorneys fees are taken right off the top before yours is even sent to you.lol.from what i unde3rstand,its adviseable to keep reciepts of what your spend,or keep a log..its normally 9months from what i read on **,and ssi we dont pay into,thats a need basis..but go to ** theres is sooo much good info there..dont worry though..

Xmelax36..am I reading that right? You say let it sit there? So then wheat do we do with it? I am using it for clothes and for preschool and I got them some toys...I was told I could use it on those things.

I personally think any back pay your child get's as a result of you being approved for SSD or SSI should be put into a savings account, CD or something of that nature for the child when they reach of age for College, A Vehicle , Ect. I dont see that a child should have to pay their parent back for them taking care of them, after all. They are your children, your not there's. If they recieve a monthly check i do however agree that some of that money should be used for clothing, ect... their needs ! I do not think they should have to pay all the bills for the household. If that were the case then moms and dads could do whatever they wanted with their moneys and just use the kids check... Seems unfair to me. Using their money to pay for gas to take them to the Dr. No Way ! Your the parent, why should they have to support themselves? The money they recieve is for them, for their care... any money that is left over should be put in a savings for them for when they get older. Alot of parents abuse these kids back pay and their monthly checks and it's just unethical. I do beleive that reciepts should be shown for large purchases of any kind...