Social Security spousal benefits for non-US citizen spouse - tax withholding and residency requirements confusion

The agent was partially right but also wrong. For non-US citizens living abroad who receive Social Security benefits, there is typically a 30% tax withholding unless your wife's country of residence (Germany) has a tax treaty with the US - which it does! Under the US-Germany tax treaty, your wife should be exempt from US tax withholding on Social Security benefits. As for the residency requirement - that's completely incorrect. There is NO requirement for your non-citizen spouse to visit the US to receive spousal benefits. Once approved, she'll receive her payments regardless of where she lives. I suggest you call back and speak with a different representative who specializes in international benefits. Ask specifically about the tax treaty provisions for Germany.

my sister is married to a canadian and gets spousal benifits over there. she NEVER has to visit the US for her checks!!! that agent was smoking something lol

You're getting incorrect information. I'm a retired SSA claims specialist who handled international cases. Here are the facts: 1. Tax withholding: For nonresident aliens, the default withholding is indeed 30% unless a tax treaty applies. Germany has a tax treaty with the US (as another commenter mentioned). You should submit form W-8BEN to claim treaty benefits. 2. Residency requirements: This is completely false. There is absolutely NO requirement for non-citizen spouses living abroad to spend any time in the US to receive benefits. Once entitled, your wife will receive payments regardless of where she lives. I recommend calling SSA's Office of International Operations directly at +1-410-965-0160. They specialize in these exact situations and can provide accurate information about your wife's benefits.

I went through this exact situation with my Japanese wife last year. The regular SSA agents are often clueless about international cases. I wasted weeks trying to get correct information until someone told me about Claimyr (claimyr.com). Their service connected me directly to an SSA agent who specializes in international benefits within 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The specialist confirmed there's NO residency requirement, and they helped us file the right tax forms to reduce withholding based on the US-Japan tax treaty. Saved us a ton of headaches!

Wait I'm confused... so do they withhold tax from ALL SS payments to foreigners?? My husband is from Brazil and we're planning to move there next year. Will they automatically take 30% of his regular retirement benefits too?? This is the first I'm hearing about this!!

The residency requirement thing is TOTAL NONSENSE! The SSA is so incompetent sometimes it makes me FURIOUS!! I've been dealing with them for my Spanish wife's benefits for 3 years and the amount of misinformation is STAGGERING. We had one agent tell us she needed to come to the US every 6 months (FALSE) and another who insisted she needed a US bank account (ALSO FALSE). DON'T trust whatever random agent you get on the phone. Ask to speak with the Foreign Benefits Unit or Office of International Operations. They're the ONLY ones who actually know what they're talking about with these cases.

Sorta related but different - my wife is a green card holder and I'm retiring next year. Do I need to do anything special to apply for her spousal benefits or is it the same process as for citizens?

To give you some additional information: for your wife to receive spousal benefits as a non-US citizen living abroad, she must meet one of these requirements: 1. Have been married to you for at least 5 years, OR 2. Be entitled to some type of German social security benefit, OR 3. Have lived in the US for at least 5 years during which the marital relationship existed Based on your 13 years overseas, I'm assuming you meet the first condition. When you apply, make sure to have your marriage certificate and her German identification documents ready. The application will need to be processed through the Federal Benefits Unit responsible for Germany, which operates out of the US Consulate in Frankfurt. The tax treaty is handled separately from eligibility, so don't let an uninformed agent confuse these issues.

This is exactly why I joined this community - dealing with SSA misinformation is so frustrating! I'm in a similar situation with my British spouse and we're considering moving to the UK. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly eye-opening. It's clear that the regular SSA phone agents often don't understand international cases at all. @Victoria Brown - your expertise as a former SSA claims specialist is invaluable here. Thank you for providing such detailed, accurate information. It's shocking how much bad advice gets given out by people who should know better. For anyone else dealing with international spousal benefits, it seems like the key takeaways are: 1. There are NO residency requirements for non-citizen spouses to visit the US 2. Tax treaties can eliminate or reduce the 30% withholding 3. Always ask to speak with the Office of International Operations or Foreign Benefits Unit 4. Don't trust the first agent you speak with if something sounds wrong Has anyone else had success with getting accurate information on their first call, or is it always a battle to reach someone knowledgeable?

As someone who just went through this exact process with my Swedish wife last year, I can confirm that the agent you spoke with gave you completely incorrect information on both points! 1. The tax withholding: Yes, there's typically 30% withholding for non-US citizens, BUT Germany has a tax treaty with the US that should eliminate this. You'll need to file Form W-8BEN to claim the treaty benefits. We did this for Sweden and my wife pays no US taxes on her spousal benefits. 2. The residency requirement: This is 100% FALSE. There is absolutely no requirement for your wife to spend any time in the US to receive spousal benefits. We've been living in Stockholm for 8 years and my wife has never had to return to the US for her benefits. I'd strongly recommend calling the Office of International Operations directly rather than the general SSA line. The regular agents often have no clue about international cases, but the international specialists know exactly how these situations work. The misinformation you received is unfortunately very common - we went through three different agents before getting accurate information. Your wife should qualify for spousal benefits without any residency strings attached. Don't let bad information from an uninformed agent discourage you from pursuing what you're entitled to!

I'm dealing with a very similar situation for my Canadian spouse and can confirm that the agent gave you completely wrong information! We've been living in Toronto for 7 years and my wife receives her spousal benefits with zero issues and no residency requirements whatsoever. The 30% withholding is standard for non-US citizens, but as others have mentioned, the US-Canada tax treaty eliminates this. We filed the W-8BEN form and now she receives her full benefits without any withholding. The process was straightforward once we got connected with someone who actually understood international cases. That "2 months in the US" requirement is absolute nonsense - I've never heard anything so ridiculous! My wife hasn't been to the US in over 3 years and her payments continue without interruption. It sounds like you got an agent who was either completely new or just making things up. Definitely call the Office of International Operations at the number Victoria provided. They sorted everything out for us in one phone call after we wasted weeks getting conflicting information from regular SSA agents. Don't let this bad experience discourage you - your wife is absolutely entitled to those benefits without jumping through imaginary hoops!