Confused about Social Security spousal benefits calculation - spouse turning 62 getting less than half my benefit

The calculation is pretty straightforward, but there are a few key factors at play. Since your husband is filing at 62 (before his Full Retirement Age), both his own benefit AND the spousal benefit will be reduced. Here's how it works: 1. He'll get his own reduced benefit of $749 2. The spousal benefit would normally be 50% of your PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) of $1705, which is $852.50 3. BUT since he's filing early, the spousal portion gets reduced 4. At age 62, the spousal benefit is reduced to about 32.5% instead of 50% 5. So his spousal portion would be around $554 However, he doesn't get both amounts added together. The SSA will pay his own benefit first, then add enough of the spousal benefit to reach the higher amount. So mathematically: If $749 (his benefit) is less than $554 (reduced spousal), he'd get $554. If his benefit is higher (which it is in this case), he gets his own $749. Your husband should expect to receive $749 monthly based on the figures you provided. There's no additional spousal supplement because his own reduced benefit exceeds the reduced spousal benefit.

I went through almost EXACTLY this same situation last year with my husband!!! The way Social Security explained it to me (after 3 FRUSTRATING calls) is that they do something called "deemed filing" now. This means when your spouse files at age 62, they are filing for BOTH their own benefit AND the spousal benefit simultaneously. The problem is that both benefits get reduced because he's filing early!!! So the 50% of your benefit gets reduced to something like 32.5% because he's taking it at 62 instead of his full retirement age. So here's what happens: 1. SSA calculates his own reduced benefit: $749 2. SSA calculates the reduced spousal benefit (around 32.5% of your $1705): Roughly $554 3. They pay the HIGHER of those two amounts Since his own benefit ($749) is higher than the reduced spousal benefit ($554), he will only get his own benefit. NO SUPPLEMENT!!! I was SO ANGRY when I found this out because no one explains this clearly on the SSA website!!!

Just to add some clarity here - the key thing to understand is that the 50% spousal benefit is only available if your spouse waits until their Full Retirement Age (FRA) to file. At 62, that 50% gets reduced to approximately 32.5%. Here's the exact calculation: 1. Your husband's own benefit at 62: $749 2. 50% of your benefit: $852.50 3. Reduction for early filing: multiply by approximately 0.65 (varies slightly based on birth year) 4. Reduced spousal benefit: approximately $554 Since $749 > $554, he only receives his own benefit. This surprises a lot of people, but if your husband could wait until his FRA to file, he would get his own benefit plus a supplement to bring him up to 50% of yours (assuming his FRA benefit is still less than half of yours).

my husband and i had this EXACT problem!!! the ssa people are so unhelpful on the phone. we waited FOR HOURS multiple times and got different answers every time we called.

Not an expert but I think ur husband gets his 749 and thats it. My understanding is he only gets extra from ur record if 50% of ur benefit (reduced for his early filing) is MORE than his own benefit. Since his own benefit is higher, thats all he gets. Thats what happened with my sister and her husband.

One more thing to consider: If your husband can afford to wait until his Full Retirement Age (66+), the math would be very different. At FRA: 1. His own benefit would be higher (probably around $1000-1100) 2. The spousal benefit would be the full 50% of yours ($852.50) In this case, his own benefit would likely still be higher, but it's worth calculating. And if your benefit is substantially higher, waiting until FRA might mean he qualifies for some spousal supplement. This is why so many people get frustrated with Social Security planning - the timing makes a huge difference in what you receive, and the rules aren't intuitive.

My friend's situation was kinda similar and I think there was a surprise with how much she got so def have your husband ask very specific questions during his phone appt! Good luck

Just to clarify one more point that sometimes confuses people: The decision about when to file is separate for each of you. You've already filed, but your husband still has options. If your husband files at 62, he gets approximately 70% of his FRA benefit (the $749). If he waits until FRA, he gets 100% of his FRA benefit (probably around $1070). If he waits until 70, he gets 132% of his FRA benefit (around $1412). The spousal benefit doesn't increase after FRA, so there's no spousal advantage to waiting beyond FRA. But his own benefit continues to grow until 70. Since his own benefit is already higher than the reduced spousal benefit, waiting longer would just increase that gap.