Social Security spousal benefits after divorce - will I still get 50% or full amount?
I'm trying to help my sister navigate a complicated situation with her Social Security benefits. She's 68 and her husband is 70, they've been married for 31 years. He was the primary breadwinner (owned a small construction business) while she worked part-time as a teacher's aide. She's currently receiving spousal benefits that are about 50% of his Social Security amount (he gets around $3,200/month, she gets $1,600/month). Their marriage has been rocky for years, and now they're seriously considering divorce. The question is: if they divorce now, will her monthly benefit amount change? Will she still receive 50% of his benefit or would she get something different? She's worried about making ends meet if her benefits decrease. Does anyone know how divorce affects spousal Social Security benefits in retirement?
17 comments
Join the conversation
Wesley Hallow
Actually, she might be eligible for divorced spouse benefits if they've been married at least 10 years, which sounds like they have been. I think she would still get the same amount - 50% of his benefit - even after divorce. But I'm not totally sure about this.
0 coins
Kennedy Morrison
•Thanks for responding! That's somewhat reassuring. Do you know if there's any paperwork she needs to file with SSA after the divorce is finalized? Or does it happen automatically?
0 coins
Justin Chang
Your sister can continue receiving divorced spouse benefits that equal 50% of her ex-husband's benefit amount, provided they were married for at least 10 years (which at 31 years, clearly qualifies). The benefits will remain the same as what she currently receives as a spouse. The divorce will not increase her benefit to 100% of his amount. Important points to know: 1. She'll need to notify SSA of the divorce 2. Her ex-husband's future life events (remarriage, death) won't affect her benefits 3. If she remarries, she would lose the divorced spouse benefits 4. If your sister worked enough to earn her own Social Security, SSA will pay her own benefit first, then supplement up to the 50% spousal amount if her own benefit is smaller Hope this helps clarify things for her situation!
0 coins
Kennedy Morrison
•Thank you so much for this clear explanation! She'll be relieved to know her benefits won't decrease. One follow-up question - if her ex-husband passes away in the future (after they're divorced), would she then be eligible for survivor benefits, which I've heard are 100% of his amount?
0 coins
Grace Thomas
My friend went thru this exact thing!!!!! After her divorce the social securty office was IMPOSSIBLE to deal with - she couldn't get anyone on the phone for WEEKS and almost missed a payment. The local office had a 3 month wait for appointments! It was a nightmre for her even though she qualified for the divorced spouse benefits. Just warning your sister it might not be smooth sailing with SSA.
0 coins
Hunter Brighton
•This is so true! When I had to deal with SSA after my divorce, I spent hours trying to reach someone. But I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a real person at SSA in under 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - honestly made the whole process so much less stressful. Might be worth checking out if your sister has trouble reaching SSA after the divorce.
0 coins
Dylan Baskin
To answer your follow-up question - yes, if they divorce and they were married for at least 10 years, and then he passes away, she would be eligible for surviving divorced spouse benefits. These benefits are indeed generally equal to 100% of what he was receiving (or would have received). So her benefit would increase at that point. One clarification to what others have said: the 50% spousal/divorced spouse benefit is actually the maximum she can receive if he's still living. If her own work history would provide a benefit higher than 50% of his, she'd receive her own benefit amount instead. SSA always pays the higher of the two.
0 coins
Lauren Wood
•Not to contradict but this isnt entirely accurate...the survivors benefit can be reduced if she claims before her FRA. My mom got only 71.5% of my dads benefit because she claimed survivors benefits early.
0 coins
Ellie Lopez
has anyone adressed if she could maybe get MORE if she claimed on her OWN work record instead of as a spouse? sometimes ppl dont realize they could get more from there own work history especially if they worked for 31 years even part time
0 coins
Justin Chang
•This is a good point. SSA automatically pays the higher of the two benefit amounts - either her own retirement benefit based on her work history or the spousal benefit (which is up to 50% of her husband's). Since she's currently receiving the spousal benefit, that indicates her own work record would provide a lower amount. But it's always worth checking with SSA to verify they've calculated everything correctly.
0 coins
Grace Thomas
I went thru a divorce after 22 yrs of marriage and let me tell you the WHOLE PROCESS with SSA is a NIGHTMARE!!!! They lost my paperwork 2X and then said I never submitted it! I had to get my congressmans office involved to fix it!!!! Tell your sister to make copies of EVERYTHING and get reciepts when she submits anything!!!!
0 coins
Kennedy Morrison
•Oh wow, that sounds awful! Thanks for the warning. I'll definitely make sure she keeps copies of everything and documents all her communications with them.
0 coins
Wesley Hallow
So basically her benefits stay the same, 50% of his, as long as they were married for 10+ years. Isn't it kinda strange that you get the same whether you're married or divorced? I wonder why they do it that way?
0 coins
Dylan Baskin
•The reason is to provide financial protection for people (historically often women) who may have limited their own career opportunities to support a spouse or raise children. The 10-year marriage duration requirement ensures there was a significant period of economic partnership. Congress established these rules to prevent older Americans who sacrificed career advancement from facing poverty in old age due to divorce.
0 coins
Kennedy Morrison
Thank you all so much for the helpful information! I've taken notes on everything to share with my sister. She'll be relieved to know her benefits will remain at 50% even after divorce, and it's interesting to learn about the survivor benefits possibility in the future. I'll definitely warn her about keeping documentation and the potential challenges dealing with SSA during the transition. This community has been incredibly helpful!
0 coins
Justin Chang
•You're welcome! One final tip: when she does notify SSA of the divorce, she should try to do it both by phone and in writing. That creates a paper trail and helps prevent delays in processing. Best of luck to your sister!
0 coins
Malik Johnson
Just wanted to add one more important point that might help your sister - she should also be aware that if she's currently receiving Medicare through her husband's work history, that coverage may be affected by the divorce. She'll want to check with Medicare about her coverage options post-divorce to make sure there are no gaps. Sometimes people focus on the Social Security benefits and forget about the healthcare coverage aspects. Good luck to her navigating this difficult situation!
0 coins