Social Security spousal benefits - reduced amount based on husband's early filing or his FRA amount?
I'm confused about how my spousal benefits will be calculated when my husband took early retirement. My husband started collecting his Social Security at 62 three years ago. He's now 65 and receives about $1,925 monthly. I'm turning 62 next month and planning to apply for spousal benefits. I haven't worked enough quarters for my own benefit, so I'll only get the spousal benefit. Here's what I can't figure out - will my spousal benefit be based on 50% of what he's ACTUALLY receiving now ($1,925) or 50% of what he WOULD HAVE received if he had waited until his full retirement age? And then I know that gets reduced because I'm claiming early at 62. The SSA website is so confusing on this! I've read different things and just want to know what to expect for my monthly check. Thanks for any help!
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Ethan Clark
Your spousal benefit will be based on 50% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), which is what he would have received at his full retirement age - NOT what he's actually getting after reduction for early filing. The fact that he took his benefits early doesn't reduce your spousal benefit calculation base amount. However, since you're taking spousal benefits early at 62, YOUR amount will be permanently reduced from that 50% figure. At 62, you'll get approximately 32.5% of his PIA instead of the full 50%.
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Aisha Mahmood
•Thank you so much! That makes sense. So if his FRA amount would have been around $2,750, then I'd get 32.5% of that, which is about $893? That's better than I thought! I was afraid it would be based on his reduced amount.
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AstroAce
my sister went thru this last year. the amount is based on what he would of got at full retirement age not what he is getting now. but since your taking it early too youll get less. they take the 50% then reduce it for your early filing.
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Yuki Kobayashi
•This is correct! I talked to an agent at SSA about this very thing last month. The spousal benefit starts from 50% of the PIA (full retirement amount) regardless of when the worker claimed. Then they reduce YOUR portion if YOU claim early.
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Carmen Vega
I'm pretty sure it's based on what he's actually getting now! That's what happened to my friend Diane. She got way less than she expected because her husband took SS early. You should definitely call and check before you make any decisions. The reps can give you the exact numbers for your situation.
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Ethan Clark
•That's not correct. Spousal benefits are always based on the worker's PIA (full retirement age amount), not their reduced benefit. Your friend Diane likely got less for other reasons - perhaps she has her own benefit that's higher than her spousal benefit, or maybe there were other factors like WEP/GPO reductions or she misunderstood her estimate.
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Andre Rousseau
has anyone else spent HOURS trying to get thru to ssa about this stuff? i swear i called 12 times last week trying to figure out my own spousal benefit question and either got disconnected or was on hold for literally 2+ hours and had to hang up!!! so frustrating!!
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Zoe Stavros
•I had the same problem trying to reach SSA last month about my disability application. After struggling for days, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an agent in under 20 minutes. You should check out their video to see how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. It was such a relief to finally talk to someone who could answer my questions about the spousal benefit calculations. They connected me directly to an agent who explained everything about how my husband's early filing would affect my benefits.
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Jamal Harris
To clarify this important point: Your spousal benefit will be based on your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), which is what he would have received at his Full Retirement Age (FRA). The formula is: 1. Start with 50% of your husband's PIA (not his reduced benefit) 2. Apply your own reduction factor for claiming before your FRA At age 62, the maximum spousal benefit is approximately 32.5% of your husband's PIA. This is a permanent reduction. For example: If your husband's PIA is $2,750 (the amount he would have received at his FRA), your spousal benefit at age 62 would be approximately $894 per month (32.5% of $2,750). His choice to claim early has no impact on the base amount used to calculate your spousal benefit.
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Aisha Mahmood
•Thank you for breaking it down so clearly! That's a relief. One more question - does his COLA (cost of living adjustment) get factored into this calculation too? He's already received two COLAs since he started collecting.
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Jamal Harris
Yes, COLAs are included. Your husband's PIA has been adjusted upward with each COLA since he filed. Your spousal benefit will be based on his current PIA, which includes all COLAs that have been applied since he began receiving benefits. So those increases are factored into the base amount used for your spousal benefit calculation.
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AstroAce
•wish they explained this stuff better on there website!! its like they make it confusing on purpose i swear
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Yuki Kobayashi
One thing nobody mentioned - if you have ANY benefit based on your own work record, even a small one, they will pay that first and then add enough of the spousal benefit to bring you up to the spousal amount. You said you don't have enough quarters, but if you have some work history, you might want to check if you qualify for even a small benefit on your own record.
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Aisha Mahmood
•I only worked part-time jobs here and there, maybe 15 years total? I don't think I have the 40 quarters needed. But maybe I should check my SSA account just to be sure.
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Ethan Clark
You actually only need 40 quarters (10 years) to qualify for your own retirement benefit. With 15 years of even part-time work, you might qualify! Definitely check your my Social Security account online. If you do have your own benefit, you'll receive the higher of: 1) your own reduced retirement benefit, or 2) your reduced spousal benefit. They don't stack - you get the larger of the two.
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Andre Rousseau
•this happened to my cousin! she thought shed get spousal but turns out her own benefit was actually higher so that's what they gave her. definately check ur record!!
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