Ask Larry

Am I Entitled To And Benefits If My Ex Is Approved For Disability Benefits?

I divorced my husband of 30+ years in 2018. He lost his job in 2019 and then became disabled at age 60 and has applied for SS disability benefits. I am age 60 and work full time. Am I entitled to any benefits as his ex when his disability is approved? When he attains 65, 67?
Thank you

Hi,

If your ex is approved for Social Security disability (SSDI) benefits you could potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits, but not before you reach age 62 and only if your ex's primary insurance amount (PIA) is more than twice as much as your own PIA. Even if your ex isn't drawing SSDI or Social Security retirement benefits, you could still potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits, but again not prior to age 62 and only if your ex's primary insurance amount (PIA) is more than twice as much as your own PIA. Also, if you file for benefits prior to full retirement age (FRA), your benefits could be fully or partially withheld if you earn too much to be eligible for payments under Social Security's earnings test (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/whileworking.html).

You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to do your Social Security planning.

Best, Jerry

Posted: 
Sep 24 2019 - 5:23pm
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