Q. I’m just turned 65 and haven’t applied for Social Security benefits yet. My husband applied for his benefits when he retired at age 70. If I apply for spouse benefits, would I be entitled to 50% of his benefits?
A. Unfortunately, unless you wait until you reach 67, you are not eligible to earn a spouse’s benefit, which amounts to 50% of your husband’s profits. If you apply for spouse’s profit now, you will get less than 50% of his profit. You will also apply for profit based on your own work records. You are also entitled to benefits based on which benefits are higher, your spouse’s interests, or work records. Touch the base along with your Social Security representative, determine your potential benefits (for your spouse or your job) and decide what happens if you wait until you’ve filed until you’re 67. Once you have that information, you can make a better decision.
Q. My wife is disabled and receives disability income from her employer for work outside of Social Security and disability income from Social Security. My daughter is 17 years old and is planning to go to college. I’m approaching the age of complete retirement. I’m worried about the income my wife and daughter will receive. My wife is a few years younger than me.
A. If your wife is positive, the benefits of her survivor based on your work record will depend on the age at the time. For example, at age 60, her survivor benefits are 71.5% of your Social Security benefits, and up to 100% of her comparisons are made when she reaches full retirement age. She is already receiving Social Security Disability benefits, so she is entitled to only what amounts are higher, Social Security Disability Income or survivor’s benefits. Your daughter is eligible for survivor benefits if she is under 18 at the time of your death, or if she is under 19 years of age and is a high school student. She is currently receiving disability benefits based on your wife’s work record. She only covers which benefits are higher, benefits from disability based on your wife’s work records, or survivor’s benefits based on your work records. She is eligible for 75% of your full retirement benefits as long as she is under the age of 19.
Q. I am receiving pensions for work I did outside of Social Security. I am 68 years old. I haven’t worked long enough under Social Security to make a profit based on my work records. My wife has retired under Social Security and is profiting for her work record. After she applied for her profit, I applied for my spouse’s profit and was turned down as I was told my pension was too high. Due to the abolition of WEP and GPOs, am I now eligible for spouse benefits? If my wife assumes me, do I qualify for the benefit of a survivor?
A. You are definitely entitled to the benefits of your spouse. You were turned down when you applied because your spouse’s profit was discounted by two-thirds of your pension. Now you are entitled to 50% of her Social Security benefits. If your wife assumes you, you are already at your full retirement age and are entitled to 100% of her Social Security benefits at that time as a survivor benefit.
Q. I have retired from work outside of Social Security. I have never worked under Social Security. I didn’t apply for Social Security benefits because I was told I wasn’t eligible for my important pension. I am 65 years old. My 68-year-old husband worked only under Social Security and retired when he reached full retirement age. Several individuals have told me I am now eligible for spousal benefits (I have never applied before). If my husband dies before me, I qualify for the benefit of the survivor. I recently applied for Social Security for the benefit of my spouse and the representative told me I was not eligible for profit as I had never applied before. Is that correct?
A. No, that’s not correct. You are now eligible for the benefit of your spouse, and you should be retroactively qualified to receive that benefit from January 1, 2024. You must submit your online appeal at https://www.ssa.gov/apply/appeal-decision-we-made
Elliot Raphaelson welcomes your questions and comments at rapelliot@gmail.com.
Original issue: May 2, 2025, 4:46pm EDT
