Divorce removes you from claims on your ex-spouse’s future assets, but not necessarily their social security benefits. While more and more women are in the workforce, many can still receive a larger Social Security benefit based on their ex-husband’s work record than they can on their own. When you decide to take those retirement benefits, the Social Security Administration will calculate the benefits for which you are eligible—your own as a worker, or yours as an ex-spouse.
You will always receive the amount of the highest benefit for which you qualify—not the benefits added together. The good news is that a divorced woman can receive Social Security benefits without filing any special papers at the time of divorce, and it doesn’t matter if her ex-husband has remarried.
A divorced woman must meet certain criteria to collect benefits based on her ex-husband’s work record:
- You must have been married for 10 years or longer.
- You must not be currently married.
- If you re-married and your second spouse is deceased, you qualify to claim benefits from either your first or your second husband as long as each marriage lasted at least 10 years.
- You will receive whichever benefit amount is higher.
- You must be age 62 or older.
- If your former husband is deceased, you may collect benefits as early as age 60 as a surviving divorced spouse.
- If he is deceased and you are disabled, you can collect as early as age 50.
If your ex-husband can qualify for benefits and is age 62 or older, you can start receiving benefits when you have been divorced for two or more years. In general, you will receive one-half of his retirement benefit. If he should die before you, you will receive his full retirement benefit. Your full retirement age will also affect the benefit amount you receive.
The age for full retirement has been gradually increasing from 65 to 67 based on a person’s birth year. To find out your full retirement age, go to http://www.ssa.gov.
You can apply for some benefits on-line by going to http://www.ssa.gov. To apply for benefits on your ex-husband’s work record, you will need to know his Social Security number. If you don’t’ know it, you can provide his date and place of birth and his parents’ names. And he does not even have to know. Your benefit does not impact what he receives in any way.
This is a very complex issue, with several options. Consult with your Certified Divorce Financial Analyst for up-to-date information about your specific situation before filing.
