Ask Larry

Can I Draw Spousal Benefits From My Wife's Record If My SS Is Reduced By WEP?

My S/S after WEP is 380.00. Can I draw Spousal benefits from my wife's record which would be 489.00 & avoid the WEP reduction ?

Hi. The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) doesn't affect spousal benefits. However, if your non-Social Security covered pension is based on your work for a government agency in the U.S. then any spousal benefits for which you would otherwise qualify would almost certainly be offset by 2/3rds of the amount of your government pension. That's due to the Government Pension Offset (GPO) provision, which is explained in the following Social Security publication: https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10007.pdf.

Furthermore, you couldn't qualify for spousal benefits unless your spouse is already drawing their benefits. Our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) is fully capable of handling computations involving both the WEP and GPO provisions, so you may want to strongly consider using the software to analyze your benefit options.

Best, Jerry

Posted: 
Apr 23 2021 - 12:50pm
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