Social Security Report

Q & A

Is it possible to benefit from a previous spouse’s Social Security if I married and divorced again?

Answer: Provided you’re not now married yet again and that you were married to both former spouses for 10 or more years, you can take the larger of the two spousal benefits (provided you are eligible for both). To collect a spousal benefit as a divorced spouse, your ex-husband needs to be over 62 and either he has to have filed for a spousal benefit or you need to have been divorced for at least two years. Given those conditions, some divorcées may need to take a spousal benefit from their lower-earning ex first and then switch to taking a spousal benefit from their higher-earning ex. Make sure you let Social Security know about both former spouses.

Also, be aware that if one or both of your 10-years-or-more-in-the-saddle exes dies, you can collect survivor benefits based on the deceased ex’s earnings record. The survivor benefit of the lower-earning spouse might well exceed the spousal benefit from the higher-earning spouse. So you might, under the right circumstances, go from taking a spousal benefit on the lower-earning spouse to taking a spousal benefit on the higher-earning spouse or even from taking a survivor benefit on the lower-earning spouse to taking a survivor benefit on the higher-earning spouse.

Keep on top of the Social Security Administration to determine from whom you should be collecting benefits and when because they won’t necessarily keep track.

Source: http://www.pbs.org – Larry Kotlikoff, 11/7/2013

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