Will Social Security deny my benefits for not knowing ex-spouse's birthday during interview?

Don't worry too much. They're just verifying your relationship history as part of their standard process. As long as you were truthful about what you do and don't remember, they should be able to verify her information in their system. The SSA has access to marriage and divorce records that will confirm your relationship existed. They're mostly concerned with fraud prevention, not testing your memory. Did you provide your marriage certificate or divorce decree during your application? That documentation is much more important than remembering her birthday.

This happened to me!!! When I applied 2 years ago they asked about my ex husbands MOTHERS maiden name?!?!? Who remembers that after 20 years divorced??? I told them I had no idea and they still approved me. As long as you were honest about not knowing instead of making something up youll be fine

They're just trying to verify your relationship is legitimate. The fact that you remembered your marriage date is actually more important than her birthday. The SSA has access to all their own records and can verify these details themselves - they're just cross-checking against what you provide to ensure consistency and prevent fraud. I've helped dozens of clients through this process, and minor memory issues about ex-spouses from years ago have never been grounds for denial. The critical factors for your benefits are your own work record, age, and documented relationships - not whether you can recall every personal detail about someone you divorced over a decade ago.

I couldn't even tell you my CURRENT wife's birthday half the time lol. But seriously I think they're just checking boxes on a form. My benefits got approved even though I messed up a bunch of dates.

While it's natural to be concerned, this type of verification is standard procedure. The SSA is primarily looking to confirm your marital history is accurate since it can affect benefit eligibility calculations, particularly if you might be eligible for spousal benefits based on your ex's record (if you were married 10+ years). They have access to their own verification systems and databases that will confirm these details. As long as you were truthful about what you do and don't recall, and your documented history matches their records, this shouldn't impact your claim. If you're worried about your application status, you might want to check in with them. Unfortunately, getting through to SSA by phone can be incredibly frustrating with wait times often exceeding 2+ hours. I discovered a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to an agent in under 10 minutes when I had issues with my own application. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Much better than spending half your day on hold!

THE SSA DOES THIS ON PURPOSE!!! They ask impossible questions to try to DENY benefits that YOU PAID FOR with your taxes!!! I had an agent demand to know the address of a place I worked at in 1987!!! Who remembers that?? Then they said my application was "suspicious" because I couldn't remember! It's all a SCAM to reduce their backlog by denying legitimate claims!!

did u file for benefits on your own record or trying to get benefits from your ex's record? makes a big difference i think

wait did u bring your social security card to the interview? i heard they deny people who dont bring the actual card even if u know the number

Quick update for you - I checked with a colleague who works at our local SSA office. These questions about former spouses are standard procedure, especially for marriages lasting over 10 years (which yours did at 12 years). Since you're eligible for either benefits on your own record OR potentially spousal benefits on your ex-wife's record (whichever is higher), they need to verify the relationship. Not remembering her birthday isn't grounds for denial. They'll verify her information in their system and proceed with your application. No need to worry about this particular issue.