My mother (64) and my father (64 and 11 mos.) have been married 47 years. My father is now incarcerated will not be able to apply for or draw SSI until his release (not soon). Can my mother who earns 50k/year collect spousal benefits on my father's record now and then draw on her own when she turns 66 (or becomes proper retirement age)?
Thank you for your assistance.

Hi,

No. Your mother couldn't file for spousal benefits before her full retirement age (FRA) of 66 without also being deemed to file for her own retirement benefits. And, she couldn't claim spousal benefits until her husband files for his benefits. Furthermore, there is an earnings test (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/whileworking2.html) that applies until you reach FRA which could limit your mother's ability to receive benefits prior to then.

Your mother could potentially file just for spousal benefits only at age 66 and allow her own benefit rate to grow until age 70. This may or may not be the her best strategy depending on your parents' relative benefit rates. The catch is that your father would have to be entitled to his benefits in order for your mother to receive spousal benefits. However, even though your father couldn't actually be paid benefits while incarcerated, he could potentially file for and become entitled to benefits in order to enable his wife to draw spousal benefits.

Your mother may want to strongly consider using the maximization software available on this website in order to explore her options and determine her best filing strategy.

Best, Jerry