I am 65 and still working, beneath poverty level. Can I collect from my husband even if he isn’t 65. We have been separated for many yrs, still married though

Hi. If you're still married then the earliest that you could potential qualify for spousal benefits is when your spouse starts collecting either Social Security retirement or disability benefits. But, since you were born after January 1 1954, you can't apply for spousal benefits without also being required to apply for your own Social Security retirement benefits at the same time. Therefore, you'll only be able to qualify for spousal benefits if your spousal benefit rate is higher than your own benefit rate.

Spousal benefits are calculated based on 50% of the worker's primary insurance amount (PIA), and a person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit rate if they start drawing their benefits at full retirement age (FRA). That means that unless your own PIA is less than 50% of your spouse's PIA, you won't be eligible for spousal benefits even if he is drawing his benefits. However, surviving spouses can be paid up to the higher of their own benefit rate or their deceased spouse's full benefit rate, so if your husband's benefit amount is higher than your benefit rate and if he dies before you, you could potentially qualify for survivor benefits even if you don't qualify for spousal benefits while he's living.

Another thing for you to be aware of is that there is an earnings test that limits how much you can earn and still be able to collect Social Security benefits prior to your FRA (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/whileworking.html). Therefore, if you apply for benefits prior to your FRA and if you continue working, how much if any of your benefits you could actually be paid depends on how much you're earning.

Your best strategy for claiming benefits depends on many different factors, so you may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully compare and analyze all of your options so that you can determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry