I already get SS and wife just applied in May. She will be 62 in August. Due to her work history the spousal benefit would be larger than her own work benefit. In June they sent a letter requiring me to fill out the marriage certification form which I returned right away. (tried doing it online but it kept timing out) Last week she got a letter saying she had been approved for her work benefits which is roughly about 60% of what I believe her spousal benefit would be. I asked AI about this and it told me that is not uncommon to get a letter about the work benefits and then get a second letter advising of the additional benefits for the spousal portion. Has this been anyone’s experience or should I be checking in with the SS office?
I’m confused. I thought spousal benefit is paid to a spouse ( or qualifying ex spouse) after the death of the other spouse.
My H and I started collecting benefits at age 64 when we both retired. My benefit was much lower than his because I spent 10 years out of the paid wory( raising kids) and made less than him after that.
I did not get the spousal benefit ( which was higher than my earned benefit) until last May when H passed away,
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Main earner can wait until seventy to get full payout.
Spouse (once under social security) can apply to get half payout of main earner SS).
If spouse payout at full retirement age (70) is less than half of what main earner is getting then it’s better to go the spousal route.
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That is something that can be confusing. The one you received is the survivor benefit. The spousal benefit up to 50% of spouse’s “full retirement age” benefit for spouses who did not work or their work history does not give them as much of a benefit as they would get by getting half of spouse’s benefit
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@total1096 I’m not confused on what I am receiving or why. I got benefits based on my own until my spouse died. Then I got the spousal benefits ( which was larger).
I am consumed about the original post here. It sounds as if they expect their spouse to get the spousal benefits while both are still living. I think that is incorrect.
When spouse dies you can get their full SS benefit (if it’s higher than your own). Basically trading their benefit for your own.
In this scenario (they are still alive) you trade a lower payout to HALF of what your spouse is receiving. So if you haven’t worked much over the years or paid much into SS on a regular basis it may behoove you to take that upgrade. It does take a bit of calculation depending on your circumstances.
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Thank you , that clarifies it more.
So I think there some confusion between survivor benefits and spousal benefits.
If your spouse is deceased, that’s survivor benefits which is the full amount of their social security
Spousal benefits are for those spouses who did not work or their benefits are less than one half of the higher earning spouse.
So you will get your benefits and are deemed filing. What happens if those benefits are less than 1/2, then you receive what is called a top up for the amount to 1/2.
But that is if you file at full retirement age. If you file before your full retirement age, you will have a penalty (decrease in benefits) of up to 30% + for filing early. That will be permanent, you can never make 1/2 of the higher earning spouse because you filed before full retirement age.
This is how I understand it. And is clear as mud but the rules are the rules.
Key Rules and Eligibility
- Benefit Amount: The maximum spousal benefit is 50% of the worker’s Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) at their Full Retirement Age (FRA). If claimed exactly at your own FRA, you get the full 50%. Claiming at age 62 reduces it to 32.5%.
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Original question - yes it is normal for them to process your wife’s claim on her own, then they will process the ‘top up’ part (the amount that will bring her up to 1/2 of yours). She may even receive the lower amount for a few months and then get a back pay amount once the two claims find each other.
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Thank you. We’ll be looking for the upgrade before going into panic mode.
When your spouse died, you received survivor benefit which is different than spousal benefit.
For example, I collect a spousal benefit because my own SS benefit is less than 1/2 of my husband’s SS benefit. But because I started collecting SS at age 62, my spousal benefit is less than 1/2 of what he would have gotten at his FRA (he waited to collect until he was 70).
But if my husband dies before I do, I will collect his full retirement benefit that he collects now.
My husband is VERY much alive…and my SS benefit is a spousal benefit.
I think you are confusing spousal benefit with survivor benefit.
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Can you switch if you’ve been collecting and it’s been over 50% but as the husband continues to work and earn more and SS rises you end up under 50%?
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Umm, never mind, max has a cutoff and I’m past that at 50%.
At 65, my mother starting collecting and got half my father’s amount. She was still working so at some point her full amount was more than half his amount, so she started getting that. When he died, she got his full amount, which was more than her full amount.
When he died, I did take her to the SSA office and they processed the change right then. I think SSA would have made the change at some point as they get notified of the death certificate to stop his SS payments, but because she was collecting under her own pay records at that time, it may have taken a bit to tie the two accounts together.
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Sorry for my misunderstanding.
Today I learned that I should not post when I have been riding in a car all day along with 2 kids under 4 and not having much sleep.
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It’s all good. It’s so confusing! Clear as mud.
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@FallGirl your query actually helped provide info to others about spousal benefits!
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when your spouse dies, you stop receiving any Spousal and it becomes Survivor benefits in SS parlance.
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did you run the free calculator:
(make sure the click on the middle box)
But to answer your question, yes, it can be several letters. One, she earns benefits on her own account. Two, she earns a spousal portion on your account.
To add to this discussion, my husband and I are both 66. Our FRA is 67. I’ve retired and started collecting my pension. My husband worked in a private sector and will collect his SS benefits at 67.
I believe that with the new law that passed two years ago, once my husband collects his SS, I will be entitled up to 50% of his SS benefits, in addition to my own pension.
Let me know if my understanding is correct.