Can I get spousal benefits top-up if both my husband and I claim Social Security before FRA?

You don't have to wait until your husband reaches his FRA to receive spousal benefits, but there are several important things to understand: 1. You can receive spousal benefits as soon as both of you have filed for your own benefits. 2. If you claim spousal benefits before your FRA, they will be permanently reduced. At 62, the spousal benefit is reduced to about 32.5% of your husband's PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) instead of the full 50%. 3. The "top-up" is the difference between your own reduced benefit and your reduced spousal benefit. Social Security will pay your own retirement benefit first, then add the spousal top-up if applicable. 4. Since both of you are claiming early, both benefits will be permanently reduced. This means your husband's early filing reduces his benefit, but does NOT reduce your spousal benefit calculation (which is based on his PIA, not his reduced benefit). Given your numbers, you should run the calculations carefully before deciding - early claiming permanently reduces benefits for life.

my sister went thru this last year and she got realy confused too. she had to call ssa like 4 times because she kept getting diffrent answers!! the rules are so complicated and the ppl on the phone sometimes don't explain it right. good luck!!

I went threw this EXACT situation with my husband. What nobody tells you is that they calculate the spousal benefit based on your husbands PRIMARY AMOUNT not his reduced amount!! So even though he's filing early his PIA is what they use to figure your spousal benefit. Then they reduce YOUR spousal benefit based on YOUR age. It's all crazy complicated. But you DONT have to wait till he reaches FRA. As soon as both of you file you can get the spousal benefit. You'll get your own benefit + the extra spousal amount to bring you up to your reduced spousal level.

I tried calling the SSA for weeks when I had a similar question about spousal benefits last year. Always busy signals or 2+ hour waits only to get disconnected. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA agent in under 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Once I talked to the agent, they explained my specific situation and how the spousal benefit would work in my case. Worth it to get official answers directly from SSA since these calculations can be so personal to your situation.

Everybody here is talking about spousal benefits but what about survivor benefits? Aren't those different? My mom gets survivor benefits from my dad.

I've been through this exact process. Here's what happens: 1. When you both file early, you IMMEDIATELY become eligible for any spousal top-up you qualify for. No waiting for FRA. 2. The CALCULATION for your combined benefit would be: - Calculate your own reduced benefit ($1,260) - Calculate your reduced spousal benefit (32.5% of his $2,900 PIA = $942.50) - Compare your own benefit ($1,260) to your total spousal entitlement ($942.50) - Since your own benefit ($1,260) is MORE than the spousal amount ($942.50), you would NOT receive any spousal top-up. Based on the numbers you provided, you would not receive a spousal top-up because your own benefit already exceeds the reduced spousal benefit amount. The spousal benefit only helps when your own benefit is significantly smaller than half of your spouse's.

DONT DO IT!!!! Filing early is a HUGE mistake for most people!!! You're throwing away THOUSANDS of dollars over your lifetime!!! I filed early at 62 and it's my biggest regret. If you can possibly wait until FRA or even 70, DO IT!!!

To clarify a point that might be causing confusion: the spousal benefit calculation is: The higher of: 1. Your own retirement benefit OR 2. Up to 50% of your spouse's PIA (reduced if you claim before FRA) You don't get both. You get the higher amount. And since you're claiming early, that 50% would be reduced to about 32.5% at age 62. Based on your numbers ($1,260 own benefit vs. $942.50 reduced spousal at 62), you would just receive your own $1,260 benefit. No spousal top-up would apply unless your husband's PIA was significantly higher than $2,900.

Looking at your numbers more carefully, there's something important to consider for your long-term planning: If you wait until your FRA (66+8mo), your own benefit would be $1,750. The full 50% spousal benefit based on your husband's $2,900 PIA would be $1,450. Since your own benefit at FRA ($1,750) is greater than the spousal benefit ($1,450), you would not receive a spousal top-up even at FRA. However, your husband's benefit will be significantly reduced by claiming at 63 (about 22.5% reduction). You both might want to reconsider your filing strategy if your financial situation allows waiting longer.