The Disabled Adult Child Benefit That Triggers $1,800 a Month for a 35-Year-Old Son When His Father Files for Social Security

When most people think of Social Security benefits, they think of retirement benefits. But these are not the only kind of benefits that are available. There are multiple other sources of income from the Social Security Administration, some of which can be unexpected.

One of those benefit sources is the Disabled Adult Child benefit. The DAC benefit can provide a substantial amount of monthly income to a disabled person, but there are strict rules to follow, and many people aren’t aware of how it works. Here’s what you need to know. 

How does the Disabled Adult Child benefit work?

DAC benefits allow disabled children to claim Social Security benefits based on their parents’ work history, rather than based on their own work history.  The disabled child will need to meet specific requirements, though. Specifically:

• The child’s disability must have begun before age 22
• The parent whose work record the child is claiming benefits on must be receiving their own Social Security retirement or disability benefits, or must have passed away while being eligible for Social Security
• The disabled child must be unmarried
• The disabled child must meet the Social Security Administration’s definition of disabled. 
• The child must be limited in their ability to work or unable to work as a result of their disability

The SSA has a very strict definition of what it means to be disabled. Specifically, the condition must last at least 12 months or be likely to result in death, and it must prevent the disabled person from engaging in substantial gainful activity (which is defined as working and earning above a specific threshold).

The Social Security Blue Book Listing of Impairments includes a long list of conditions that can often qualify someone for disability benefits, provided the individual has the associated symptoms included in the Blue Book for each condition. If a condition is not listed, then the disabled person must show that their own impairment is medically equivalent to a listed one.

How a parent’s retirement could trigger the disabled adult child benefit

While someone who is disabled from childhood would likely meet many of these criteria, there’s one obstacle that can prevent them from becoming eligible for the Disabled Adult Child benefit for a long time: The requirement that the parent must be getting their own Social Security benefit or must be deceased. 

Because of this requirement, many disabled adult kids don’t get their benefits until their parents reach retirement age. For example, picture a child who is 35 years old, who was diagnosed with autism at age three, and who has been continuously disabled for their entire life. Once his father claims Social Security benefits at 67, the child then becomes eligible for disabled adult child benefits.

If the father is collecting a $3,600 monthly Social Security benefit, the child’s benefit amount can total 50% of the parent’s primary insurance amount (PIA) while the parent is alive, or up to 75% if the parent dies (although there is a family maximum benefit).  In this case, if the father’s PIA is $3,600, the son would become eligible for $1,800 per month once Dad starts his retirement checks. 

Another valuable benefit could also become available as well. A disabled adult child can become Medicare eligible after receiving DAC benefits for 24 months. 

These benefits are worth thousands of dollars each year, and parents of disabled children should talk with a financial advisor to understand eligibility and to create a plan for maximizing Social Security income.