Don't Leave Social Security Money on the Table | Divorced Spousal and Survivor Benefits 

Thank you so much!

Thank you for watching!!

Good news is that these benefits don't even need to be discussed with the ex spouse :)

Thank you David! So many nuances that it feels impossible to keep these to less than an hour long... and even then... there would be an exception.

@@Theretirementnerds Hi '90 Days From Retirement', question please Sir = In An Over 10 Year Marriage -- yet 1 spouse filed for divorce (in the middle of that same marriage) but both spouses didn't go thru with that filed divorce/the divorce paperwork was completely 'pulled' after a couple of months & then that same marriage resumed Yet years later both those same spouses/that same couple filed for a new divorce and this time the divorce went thru/was finalized, thus regarding Social Security Spousal Benefits, would those same spouses/that former married couple still qualify to draw on each other's Social Security at 'the qualified' Social Security retirement ages? We were made to understand "Yes", but We wanted to double-check with You also : Thank You In Advance '90 Days From Retirement'

@ankh111 yes, you should be good if your marriage lasted 10 years and wasn't terminated that first time.

Thank you for watching :) Yes, you can switch to his higher amount as a survivor!

If you are not yet to your FRA, you may want to wait until you reach your FRA to get the full 100% benefit of a deceased spouse.

​@@Theretirementnerds: But is there any reduction from the 100% if she originally claimed at 62, or is there an automatic reset to 100% if she since has passed her full retirement age. For example, if she claimed her retirement at 62 then switched to ex-spousal benefits at 63 but was 75 when he died, do the earlier ages impact the survivor benefit amount or is that reset to 100% by her exceeding FRA at time of beginning survivor benefits? Nobody seems to know.

Thank you for watching!

Correct, and assuming they did not remarry before age 60

If you remarried after 60, yes. If you remarried before 60, and are still married to the 2nd spouse, you don't get to go off the deceased spouse, just the current spouse.

He potential spousal benefit is solely based on your PIA and her FRA. Once she starts taking benefits is when she starts getting COLAs.

Here's an answer. Quick disclaimer, you'll want to sit down with an advisor because there are some details here that will depend on your situation, but in general: Yes, you could take your divorced spousal benefit at 62 (it would be reduced because you are not FRA) and then, if your ex dies, you could step up to the full survivor benefit at your FRA. This all assumes you were married to this person for at least 10 years and you are currently unmarried. For your second question, need a little more clarification as to what you mean. If you are under your Full Retirement Age, you will have the earnings limit.

Yes, the way you said it is correct 👏

Few things here: 1. Your marriage to that previous spouse must have lasted at least 10 years. 2. Assuming #1 is true, you would file with the Social Security office. You would need your marriage license and divorce decree. 3. If you filed for your own first, that could throw a wrench in things. My email is erik@90daysfromretirement.com if you want to send me a message and our team can go through that with you. Never costs anything to talk about Social Security.

Yes, you can. A few asterisks around that. You need to have been married to that ex spouse for at least 10 years. You can't have remarried before age 60 (and still be married to the new spouse). If you remarried before 60 and divorced that spouse, still okay. Does that make sense?

No! As long as the survivor waits to take survivor benefits until FRA they won't be reduced due to early filing for a spousal benefit.

Yes, you can look at whether or not a percentage of his benefit is more than your personal benefit.

Yes! If you are over FRA, you can claim survivor and continue working 🙂

Yes, you can from your first husband. Hope that helps! :)

You can assuming the following.. -You are 60 or older -If you remarried, it happened after you turned 60. -If are under FRA, your income is within the right range. If over 21k, they will take back $1 for every $2 over the limit. -If you take SS at your FRA, you will get 100% of his PIA even though he never filed.

So that means I cannot draw my deceased ex husband's SS at 60 if I continue to work full time and if my SS at FRA is more than his, I get nothing from his? That doesn't seem fair. We were married in 1990, divorced in 2005 and he passed away this year before drawing his benefits. He was 62 and was born in 1960.

We help with strategies, helping to determine when to take SS. My email is erik@theretirementnerds.com

Hi Janet, Thank you for watching. Which benefits? Divorced Spousal (your ex is still alive), Divorced Survivor (your ex has passed away), or Survivor (you are a widow)? As to the waiting until 67, there is a lot that goes into that decision. Your current finances/income, savings, investments, and other assets, your spouse (or ex), your health both now and expected, current employment, and several other factors. If anyone tells you what age to start Social Security without knowing that list, they don't know what they're doing. We'd always recommend working with a financial professional who understands Social Security to figure out the answer to that question. Most won't charge you anything for that kind of advice. So, if you have that person in your life, use them. If you don't, we're happy to take a look, again, at no cost to you. My email is erik@90daysfromretirement.com

Eddie! For some reason, the notification didn't come up on this. So sorry it's taking so long to get back to you! If you and your spouse have a social security benefit, then you fall under the same rules :) You should be good to go.

@@Theretirementnerds we are us territory

@@eduardooramaeddie4006 Yes, and paying into SS/Medicare through FICA

@90DaysFromRetirement yes I was born in New York city, Manhattan 🇺🇸🌎

It could. If the employer, in this case the school district or government entity does not contribute the SS portion of FICA taxes throughout your career, then yes. We hope to put out a video on this in the next week or two.

Thank you for watching! You can take Survivor benefits as early as 60 and let your own personal benefit grow and take that later 🙂

How many years you have to marry to your spouse before they decease to collect their social security benefits

Timing is important here. If you remarried BEFORE age 60, you can't take the ex-spouse's spousal benefit. If you remarried AFTER age 60, you have a choice between the two. This video is long, but it goes through situations like that: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-VHHNYdpVwrU.html

Great question! With survivor benefits, it's whatever the deceased benefit was is what the surviving spouse receives. So, if the deceased spouse took benefits early, that reduced amount is the survivor benefit. If the deceased spouse waited and let SS grow, that would be the amount available to the surviving spouse (or the surviving spouse's own benefit, whichever is larger). Does that help?

@@Theretirementnerds That helps a lot. Great video, thank you!

@@Laura-kb5sr thank you for watching!

​@@Theretirementnerds : No. The answer first NOT help. Of the older, higher earner retired at full benefits (or even reduced benefits) and the younger ex-spouse retired one year short of full benefits, how diesctge younger ex-spouse's initial retirement age impact the ex-spousal and survivor benefits? Does the younger ex-spouse get ALL categories of benefits reduced by 1 year or does the younger ex-spouse get 50% and 100% despite the reduction to individual benefits? Nobody seems to know.

Unfortunately, in order to get survivor benefits off an ex-spouse, you need to have been married for at least 10 years.

No. Yours will not continue to grow for you to switch over if you're taking an (ex) spousal benefit. If he were deceased, a survivor benefit would work more along the lines of what you're thinking.

Thank you so much. That's what I thought and that's why I hadn't filed yet

@@LeisurelyLorrie great question! Thank you for watching and asking 🙏

Correct. In this example, the spouse with the higher PIA doesn't benefit from the spouse with a lower PIA.

@@Theretirementnerds thank you for your reply. New sub here.

@@southduck thank you so much! We work hard to make sure that sub is worth it to you. Appreciate you!

Yes, you can. Saw your comment that you never remarried.

Thankyou

I filed at 62 divorced over 10 yrs now I never remarried. SS says I have to draw my SS and 200.00 of his. I never got an option to take half of his which is more then Im getting now. Are they right?

Hello :) The first hurdle you will need to pass is to have resided in the US for 5 years WHILE married to your husband. If you didn't, you won't be entitled to benefits as a non-citizen spouse. If you did, there are a few more things you would need to do. My email is erik@90daysfromretirement.com Send me an email and I can get you to the right people.

Thank you for your response Sir, i appreciated. I lived for 3 months only in USA then me and my American husband live in Philippines.

Is there any option Sir for me as a widow living in Philippines.

They can't force you to take it when you don't want to. Without knowing much of your financial situation, it may or may not have been the most effective strategy for you. Depends on a few factors. It sounds like half of his benefit was more than all of your personal benefit if it added $200.

You'll indicate this information when you apply for Social Security, so they'll know that way :)

@90DaysFromRetirement thank you, great 👍 job Eddie Puerto Rico 🇵🇷🇺🇸

You are entitled to a percentage of the amount your spouse was collecting based on your FRA as long as you did not remarry before age 60 (and still married to the next spouse). While collecting survivor benefits, you can let your personal benefit grow. Usually, the recommendation is to take Survivor benefits if available and then switch to personal at 70 if the personal benefit outpaces the survivor benefit. There are exceptions of course and it is an individualized thing. Happy to look at it for you if you want. Erik@90daysfromretirement.com is my email.