Does a Spouse's Income Affect My Disability Benefits?

Your spouse's income might affect your disability benefits, depending on which program pays you benefits. The good news is that the SSDI program, which is the disability program for those who paid FICA taxes over many years, has no household income limits. Your husband or wife's income only matters for SSI (the low-income, need-based disability program).

If you're married and your husband or wife makes an income, the SSI program might "deem" part of your spouse's income to be available to you. We'll explain what deeming is below. But the gist is that, if your spouse has a sizeable income, it's likely to lower your SSI payment, or even make you ineligible for SSI.

Who Is Considered a Spouse?

If you're legally married to your partner and are living together, the Social Security Administration (SSA) considers you married for the purpose of counting your spouse's income as available to you. And because same-sex marriage is legal in all states, Social Security will "deem" income between any two people who are married.

In addition, if you live with a boyfriend or girlfriend and you "hold yourselves out" in the community to be married, Social Security will deem your boyfriend or girlfriend's income to you. Social Security will also deem income between those in some types of non-marital relationships, such as domestic partnerships and civil unions.

Social Security has special rules if you're married but legally separated when the agency is deciding whether to deem your spouse's income.

When Does Your Spouse's Income Affect Your Disability Benefits?

Remember, your spouse's income does not affect your SSDI benefits.

And if you're receiving SSI, your spouse can make a small amount of income and not have it counted against you. The amount depends on whether you have children.

But if you and your spouse have no children and your spouse has more than $472 per month (in 2024) in earned income (like wages) and unearned income (like a pension), Social Security will consider part of your spouse's income as available to you.

If you have one child, part of your spouse's income is considered to be available to you only if your spouse has more than $943 per month in income.

If you have two children, your spouse's income is considered to be available to you only if your spouse has more than $1,415 per month in income. (And so on, adding $472 for each child.)

When Social Security considers income to be available to you to pay for your food, shelter, and other necessities, they are "deeming" it to be available to you.

How Much Income Can Your Spouse Have Without It Affecting Your Benefits?

If you think in terms of annual income, Social Security will deem part of your spouse's income to you if you have no children and your spouse has more than $5,664 annually earned or unearned income.

If you have one child, your spouse's income will deem part of your spouse's income to you if your spouse has more than $11,328 per year in income. (And so on, adding $5,664 for each child.)

So if you have three children, your spouse can have almost $23,000 per year in income, and it won't affect your SSI benefits at all.

Number of Children	Monthly Threshold for Deeming Spouse's Income	Annual Threshold for Deeming Spouse's Income
0	$472 per month	$5,664 per year
1	$943 per month	$11,316 per year
2	$1,415 per month	$16,980 per year
3	$1,887 per month	$22,644 per year
4	$2,359 per month	$28,308 per year
5	$2,831 per month	$33,972 per year
6	$3,303 per month	$39,636 per year

How Much of a Spouse's Income Will the SSA Deem to You?

Social Security has a complicated formula for how much of your spouse's income the agency will deem to you. To estimate how much of your husband or wife's income will be deemed to you, you can follow these guidelines.

1. Deduct living expenses of $472 for each child from your spouse's unearned income, if any, or earned income.

2. Add your spouse's earned income to any earned income you have. Don't yet include income from a spouse's IRA or company pension.

3. Take certain deductions to give you your countable income, just as you would if you weren't married. (Social Security doesn't count all of your income for SSI.) For earned income (income from work), you're allowed to subtract $85 and then cut the remainder in half to come up with your countable earned income.

4. Add your countable income to the unearned income you and your spouse have (such as a pension).

What's left after you've made these deductions is the countable income that's deemed to you.

4. Subtract this amount from the SSI income limit for a couple (as if you were both disabled), not for an individual. The income limit (and monthly SSI benefit rate) for a couple is $1,415 in 2024.

5. What remains, if anything, will be your monthly benefit. If the remainder is zero or less, you aren't eligible for SSI.

6. If the remainder is more than the maximum federal SSI rate for an individual, $943, then you will receive only $943. (Note that these calculations would change if your state adds a state supplement to the SSI payment.)

Examples of How Your Spouse's Income Affects Your SSI Benefits

Here are a few more examples to give you an idea of whether your husband or wife's earned income might make you ineligible for SSI payments.

Spouse's salary $15,600 per year, no children

Your husband makes $1,300 per month by working and has no other income, and you have no other income and no children. The SSA will deem your spouse's income to you since your spouse makes more than $472 per month.

About $607 per month of your husband's income will be deemed to you (($1,300-$85)/2). Subtracting that amount from the couple's SSI rate of $1,415, you would only get about $808 per month ($1,415-$607), somewhat less than the federal maximum benefit of $943.

Spouse's salary $15,600 per year, two children

Your husband makes $1,300 per month through work, and you have two minor children living with you. The SSA will deem your spouse's income to you since your spouse makes more than $1,415 per month.

You don't have any income of your own. Social Security will deem only $135.50 of your husband's income to you (($1,300-$472-$472-$85)/2). Subtracting this amount from a couple's maximum SSI payment of $1,415 would give you $1,279.50 in SSI, in theory. However, you can't get more than the $943 federal maximum for SSI (unless there's a state supplement), so your monthly payment would be $943. You can see here that, because of your children, your husband's income isn't actually deemed to you at all.

Spouse's salary $36,000 per year, no children

Say your wife makes $3,000 per month at her job and has no other income, and you have no other income and no children. The SSA will deem your spouse's income to you since your wife makes more than $472 per month.

You've been approved for SSI. Only $1,457.50 per month of your wife's income will be deemed to you (($3,000-$85)/2). Subtracting that amount from the couple's SSI rate of $1,415 would leave you with nothing. You would not be eligible for SSI because of your wife's income.

Spouse's salary $30,000 per year, two children

Your wife makes $2,500 per month at her job and has no other income. Your wife's income will be deemed to you since she makes more than $1,415 per month.

You have no other income but you have two children (without an income of their own). Only $735.50 of your wife's income will be deemed to you (($2,500-$472-$472-$85)/2). Subtracting this amount from the couple's maximum SSI payment of $1,415 would give you $679.50 in SSI benefits.

Other Factors Change How Your Spouse's Income Affects Your Benefits

Note that these are rough calculations for the purpose of illustration. The SSA's formula can get a bit more complicated, particularly if:

• you are also working and have earned income of your own
• you or your spouse also has unearned income (such as a pension or a free place to live), or
• you have any impairment-related work expenses.

In addition, the calculations change in states that add on a supplementary payment to SSI. For more information, see our article on the state supplementary payment for SSI.

_{Updated December 28, 2023}