Dear Jerry, I reads your Jan 15 2018 explanation of Spousal Benefits and delayed retirement credits. My wife just hit her FRA at 66 but started drawing her own SS at 62. At that time we had been told by an advisor that, if she drew early, anytime before I began to draw my SS, she could file a "restricted application for spousal benefits" when she hit her FRA. Upon filing the restricted application she could for a full 50% of my payment and drop her claim. This is similar to your example Jan 15 example except that falls under the term "deemed" which, from what I have read, is applicable if you turned 62 after Jan 2016 (approx. date).

Does the "restricted application" allow my wife, based on her birth date and the restricted application, to drop her SS claim and pickup a full 50% of my claim. SS says no, once you start a claim its yours forever. So, according to SS, her benefit payment will be I/2 of my benefit minus her payment at FRA plus her reduced payment amount. That sounds a lot like the "deemed" situation you talked about.
Talk about confusing! HELP!!

Boiling it all down, is there a "restricted application for spousal benefits" for those born before 1954, where are the spouse actually drops her reduced amount and picks up a full 1/2

Roger

Hi Roger,

Your wife couldn't stop her own benefits and file a restricted application for spousal benefits instead. Once you file for benefits on your own record, that becomes your primary benefit for life. When you file a restricted application for spousal benefits only, what you are restricting from the scope of your application is your own retirement benefits. However, you can't restrict retirement benefits if you're already drawing them.

Your wife can still apply for spousal benefits on your record if you are drawing your benefits, but she will only be eligible for the spousal benefits if your full retirement age rate (PIA) is more than twice as much as her PIA. If it is, her unreduced spousal rate would be equal to 50% of your PIA minus her own PIA, and that amount would then be paid in addition to her own reduced retirement benefit. In other words, her combined rate in that event would be less than 50% of your PIA because she would keep the reduction for age that she took to start her own benefits early.

Best, Jerry