Can I stay on Child-in-Care benefits after turning 62 or must I apply for spousal Social Security?

The transition from Child-in-Care spousal benefits to regular spousal benefits is NOT automatic. You must file an application for reduced spousal benefits when you turn 62. CIC benefits will terminate at the end of the month before you turn 62, so you want to apply about 3 months before your birthday to avoid a gap in payments. Just be aware that by taking spousal benefits at 62, you'll receive a reduced amount compared to waiting until your Full Retirement Age.

my sister went thru the same thing last yr. she got a letter from SS about 2 months b4 her bday telling her the CIC was ending and she had to apply for regular spousal. the amount went down a little bit cause of taking it early. but she had no choice with the kids still at home.

I want to add some important information here that might affect your decision. When you apply for spousal benefits at 62, you'll receive approximately 70% of what you would get at your Full Retirement Age (FRA), which is a permanent reduction. If you've worked enough quarters to qualify for your own retirement benefit, you should check whether your own benefit might be higher than the reduced spousal benefit. Sometimes it makes financial sense to claim your own reduced retirement at 62 and then switch to spousal later. This gets complicated and depends on your specific earnings record, so I'd recommend speaking directly with an SSA representative to compare your options.

I actually went through this exact situation last year! You definitely need to apply for spousal benefits - it does NOT automatically convert. I made that mistake and had a 2-month gap with no income because I waited too long to apply. The most important thing is to apply 3 months before your birthday. I tried doing it online but the system was confusing for converting from CIC to spousal, so I ended up having to call. I spent DAYS trying to get through to someone.

one more thing nobody mentioned is that if ur kid gets SSI or SSDI too make sure that doesnt change when ur benefits change. my friends kid almost lost his benefits when she switched from CIC to spousal and they didnt tell her that would happen!!

I think everyone is making this more complicated than it needs to be. Just go to your local SS office with your ID and marriage certificate and tell them you want to apply for spousal. Took me like 45 minutes when I did it. No big deal.

To address your question about the benefit amount: Generally, your CIC spousal benefit is 50% of your husband's full retirement amount. When you switch to early spousal benefits at 62, you'll receive approximately 35% of your husband's full benefit amount (this is the 50% spousal benefit reduced by 30% for claiming at 62 instead of FRA). So yes, you should expect the monthly amount to decrease somewhat. This is why it's so important to evaluate whether your own retirement benefit might be higher, as you might be able to claim your own now and switch to spousal later when you reach FRA.