Assessing Eligibility for Spousal Social Security Benefits: Crucial Facts to Consider Before Submitting an Application
Social Security has numerous advantages, with its most significant feature being the financial protection it offers to millions of Americans during their retirement years. Over the years, its value has been hard to dispute.
After years of contributing to Social Security payroll taxes, many workers are entitled to receive Social Security retirement benefits. However, not everyone contributes to Social Security payroll taxes. Some people are full-time homemakers, have extended periods of unemployment, or work in jobs that aren't covered under Social Security.
Consequently, individuals with little to no work history may receive minimal benefits. Fortunately, there's a solution for such situations: Social Security spouse benefits. These benefits allow you to receive Social Security payments based on your spouse's work history and benefits.
If you're thinking about taking advantage of spouse benefits, here are three factors to consider first.
1. Who is entitled to receive Social Security spouse benefits?
To qualify for Social Security spouse benefits, you need to fulfill three conditions. The initial two apply to everyone, regardless of the situation: You must be married for at least one year, and your spouse must be receiving retirement benefits.
The third requirement depends on your specific situation and falls under one of the following three categories:
- You're at least 62 years old (the earliest age anyone can claim Social Security).
- You're caring for a child under 16.
- You're caring for a disabled child who became disabled before the age of 22.
To be eligible for spouse benefits, you must meet at least one of these criteria. Meeting the one-year marriage requirement and your spouse's benefit-collection requirements isn't sufficient.
Divorced individuals who were married for at least 10 years are also eligible to claim spouse benefits, as long as they haven't remarried.
2. Spouse benefit amounts depend on the primary spouse's monthly benefit amount
When you claim standard (retired worker) Social Security benefits, the amount you receive at your full retirement age is your principal insurance amount (PIA). Social Security spouse benefits are calculated based on the PIA of the primary earning spouse.
Assuming the person claiming spouse benefits has reached their full retirement age, they can receive up to 50% of their spouse's PIA. For instance, if the primary earning spouse has a PIA of $1,500, the other spouse can collect a maximum of $750 in spouse benefits.
Here are the full retirement ages by birth years:
If there's a difference in age between you and your spouse -- or if the primary earning spouse chooses to delay claiming benefits -- the person who intends to claim spouse benefits can claim benefits based on their own work history, and then switch to spouse benefits once their partner claims benefits.
3. The age at which you claim spouse benefits affects the amount you receive
You're not required to wait until your full retirement age to claim spouse benefits. You can claim as early as 62, but doing so will decrease your monthly benefit by a specified percentage, depending on how far away you are from your full retirement age.
Spouse benefits are reduced by 25/36 of 1% for each month before your full retirement age, up to 36 months. Each additional month after month 36 decreases your benefits by 5/12 of 1%.
For example, if your full retirement age is 67, and you claim spouse benefits at 62, your monthly amount will be reduced by 35% (30% for retired worker benefits if claimed at 62). If you claim at 64, it will be reduced by 25% (20% for retired worker benefits).
It's essential to note that, unlike retired worker benefits, spouse benefits do not increase if they are delayed past the full retirement age. So, if you're planning to claim spouse benefits -- and are eligible to do so -- there's no point in delaying past your full retirement age.
If you're not eligible for Social Security retirement benefits due to a lack of work history, you might consider Social Security spouse benefits, which allow you to receive payments based on your spouse's work history and benefits. The amount you receive from these spouse benefits is directly tied to your spouse's principal insurance amount (PIA), with individuals able to collect up to 50% of their spouse's PIA at full retirement age.
