26 Jun Should I collect my ex’s Social Security so mine can grow?

Q. I was married for over 10 years. Can I collect my ex’s Social Security while I wait to collect mine at full retirement age?
— Unsure

A. Divorced people have several options when to comes to Social Security.

But first, you have to make sure you qualify.

Your marriage needs to have lasted 10 years or longer, as yours did, and you must remain unmarried, be age 62 or older and your ex mist have qualified for benefits, said Jeanne Kane, a certified financial planner with JFL Total Wealth Management in Boonton.

If your ex has not applied for retirement benefits, but can qualify for them, you can receive benefits on your ex’s record if you have been divorced for at least two continuous years, she said.

“For the benefit amount, you’ll be eligible for retirement benefits based on your own work history or up to 50% of your ex’s,” she said. “You’ll get the higher of the two. No double dipping.”

The so-called “restricted application” allows a spouse or former spouse to claim Social Security benefits on their spouse or their former spouse’s record while delaying their own benefit, she said.

Kane said if you’re eligible, you may want to do this if you have the higher benefit.

“By taking your spouse’s benefit today and letting yours grow, you would have a higher benefit in the long term,” she said.

For this, you need to be born before January 2, 1954 and 69 years old, and with Social Security retirement benefits maxing out at age 70, she said.

You should contact Social Security directly so it can help you determine your ex-spousal benefit and whether it’s more beneficial to claim on your benefit or your ex’s.

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This story was originally published on June 19, 2023.

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