Will my wife's Social Security benefit increase when I file for retirement at 65?

Yes, your wife should qualify for spousal benefits that would increase her total payment. Since she's already receiving her own retirement benefit, SSA will automatically calculate if she's eligible for additional spousal benefits when you file. The maximum spousal benefit would be 50% of your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), but since she claimed early at 62, her spousal benefit will be permanently reduced. They'll pay her own benefit plus the difference to reach the reduced spousal amount, if that's higher than what she currently receives. Given the significant difference between your benefits, she'll likely see an increase.

My situation was kinda similar! My husband got WAY more SS than me (I mostly raised kids) and when he filed I got a letter a few weeks later saying my payment was going up!!! But they didn't give me the full 50% of his because I took mine at 63. Still was a nice bump tho. I think it was automatic but u might want to call SSA to make sure??? Their phone lines are IMPOSSIBLE tho ugh

The good news is your wife will definitely see an increase. Here's the calculation: The SSA will determine what 50% of your PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) would be. They'll then apply a reduction factor because she claimed at 62. Then they'll subtract her own benefit amount from this reduced spousal benefit. If the result is positive, that's the additional amount she'll receive on top of her own benefit. For example, if your PIA is $3,500, 50% would be $1,750. With a reduction for claiming at 62, her spousal benefit might be around $1,225. Subtracting her own $1,050, she might get about $175 extra per month. This is just an illustration - actual amounts will vary based on your specific PIA and her exact reduction factors. The adjustment should happen automatically within 1-3 months after you start receiving benefits, but I recommend mentioning this during your application process.

Actually, I think everyone's missing something important here. The spousal benefit is based on your PRIMARY INSURANCE AMOUNT, not your actual benefit amount. Your PIA is what you'd get at your full retirement age, which for you is probably 66 and some months, not the $3,500 you'll get by filing at 65 and 6 months. So her 50% calculation will be based on a slightly higher number than half of your actual benefit. Just wanted to point that out!

congrats on the retirement! my wife got an increase but SSA messed up the calculation twice before getting it right lol. make sure you keep all the paperwork and check the math yourself. those folks at the SSA office arent exactly rocket scientists

I was in this exact situation last year. When I filed for my benefits at 66, my wife (who'd been collecting her own small benefit for years) got an automatic increase about 6 weeks later. But I spent weeks trying to reach someone at Social Security by phone to confirm everything was processed correctly. The wait times were insane! I finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that someone on this forum recommended. They got me connected to an actual SSA agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Made it so much easier to verify that my wife's spousal benefit was being calculated correctly. Turns out there was a small error that we got fixed before it became a bigger problem.

just make sure your on the same page with medicare deductions! my wifes increase was less than expected because they started taking out medicare part b from her check instead of mine when the spousal kicked in. big surprise to us!

One more thing to keep in mind: the spousal benefit increase should happen automatically, but it's not instantaneous. There's often a 1-3 month processing time after you start receiving your benefits before your wife sees her increase. When it does come through, she should receive any back payments owed from the time you started collecting. Just don't be alarmed if it takes a bit of time to appear in her payments.

Thank you all for the helpful responses! This has given me a much clearer picture of what to expect. I'll make sure to specifically mention my wife's spousal benefit when I apply, keep careful track of the calculations, and be prepared for possible delays in processing. It sounds like she should definitely see some increase, even if it's not the full 50% due to her early claiming. And I'll be ready to contact SSA if needed using that Claimyr service if we run into problems. Really appreciate all the advice!

Just wanted to add one more consideration - make sure you understand the "deemed filing" rules. Since your wife filed before her full retirement age, when you file for your benefits, she'll automatically be deemed to have filed for spousal benefits too (which is why the increase happens automatically). But this also means she can't later switch strategies or delay spousal benefits for a higher amount. Given your benefit amounts though, this shouldn't be a problem - she'll definitely come out ahead with the spousal boost. Also, once you both start collecting, consider reviewing your tax situation since the combined income might push you into higher tax brackets or affect the taxability of your Social Security benefits.

Great question about spousal benefits! I went through something very similar with my husband. When he filed at his full retirement age, I was already collecting my own reduced benefit from filing early. The SSA automatically calculated my spousal benefit and sent me a letter about 2 months later with the increase. One thing I'd add that others haven't mentioned - make sure to review your annual Social Security statements once this kicks in. They should show both your own benefit and the spousal supplement clearly. Also, if your wife is still working part-time and earning income, keep in mind the earnings test might still apply to her benefits until she reaches her full retirement age, which could temporarily reduce the spousal portion. The process was pretty smooth for us overall, but I definitely recommend keeping copies of all correspondence from SSA during this transition period. Good luck with your retirement filing!

For 2025, the earnings test limit is $23,400 annually (or $1,950 monthly) for beneficiaries under their full retirement age. If your wife earns more than this from her part-time work, they'll reduce her benefits by $1 for every $2 over the limit. This applies to both her own retirement benefit AND any spousal benefit increase she receives. However, these aren't permanent reductions - once she reaches her full retirement age, SSA will recalculate and give her credit for any months benefits were withheld due to earnings. Given that she's working 15 hours a week in retail, you'll want to estimate her annual earnings and factor this into your planning. The SSA website has a good earnings test calculator, or you can discuss the specifics when you file your application.