Can I claim spousal Social Security benefits when my ex turns 62 if I'm already receiving my own SS?

i thought you couldn't get ex spousal unless they're actually collecting ss already?? my neighbor waited 3 yrs until her ex started collecting

I can help clarify this for you. Your ex-spouse does NOT need to be collecting Social Security benefits for you to claim divorced spouse benefits. However, he DOES need to be eligible for benefits (meaning he's at least 62 years old). Since your ex won't turn 62 until December 2025, you'll need to wait until then before you can file for divorced spouse benefits on his record. Also, remember these important requirements for divorced spouse benefits: - Your marriage lasted at least 10 years (you said 22, so you're covered) - You must be unmarried (if you remarried, you generally can't claim on an ex's record) - You must be at least 62 yourself (you are) When he turns 62 in December 2025, contact SSA to apply for the divorced spouse benefit. If 50% of his Primary Insurance Amount is higher than your current benefit, you'll receive the difference as a supplement to your own benefit.

I HATE how SSA gives different answers depending on who you talk to!!! When I was trying to figure out my widower benefits last year, I called THREE TIMES and got THREE DIFFERENT ANSWERS about how much I was entitled to. It's like they don't even train their people properly. And their website is so confusing. No wonder everyone's always confused about their benefits.

I went through almost this exact situation! My ex is 4 years younger than me. I had to wait until he turned 62 even though I was already collecting my own retirement. The good news is you don't need his cooperation at all. When I applied, I just needed: 1. Our marriage certificate 2. Divorce decree 3. His SSN (if you don't have it, SSA can usually find it) 4. My birth certificate Once he turns 62, contact them right away. It took about 6 weeks for mine to process, but then I got a nice increase over what I was receiving on my own record. They'll calculate if 50% of his benefit is more than your current benefit. If it is, you'll get the difference added to your payment. By the way, if you're having trouble getting through to SSA by phone, I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a real person in under 10 minutes instead of waiting for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Good luck!

your divorced ex has to be 62 thats the rules. but also you should know the marriage has to be 10 years minimum to qualify in case anyone else reading this is wondering

Just wanted to add something important here - if your ex happens to be disabled and receiving SSDI benefits, you might be able to claim spousal benefits even before he reaches 62. There are different rules for disability situations.

One important detail to understand: When you eventually file for the divorced spouse benefit, you won't receive the full 50% of his benefit amount in addition to your own benefit. Instead, SSA will pay you the higher of either your own benefit or up to 50% of his Full Retirement Age (FRA) benefit amount. For example, if your monthly benefit is $1,200 and 50% of his FRA benefit would be $1,500, you'd receive a total of $1,500 (not $1,200 + $1,500). Essentially, they'll add $300 to your current payment in this scenario. Also note that since you're already collecting your own retirement, filing for the divorced spouse benefit won't reduce your payment amount - it can only increase it if his record provides a higher benefit.

btw does anybody know if her ex remarries does that affect her getting benefits on his record?? just curious