So, I was married for 20 years and have been divorced for 3 years. I am 60.5 years old. My ex is 55 and will not be retiring soon. I was told even if he remarries, which he is planning to do since ge just got engaged, that I can still recieve 1/2 of his benefits. Is this true, and when would I need to wait till. I know if I wanted to start at 62 years ut would be less, but the money would really help me. What if I plan to remarry before 62. Any advice?

Hi,

Yes, it's true that you could potentially be paid divorced spousal benefits even if your ex is remarried, but your ex must either be drawing his benefits or be at least age 62 in order for you to potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits while your ex is still living (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.03/handbook-0311.html). Furthermore, as long as your ex is living you would need to be unmarried in order to potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits.

However, if your ex dies you could potentially qualify for surviving divorced spousal benefits even if you're remarried, provided that you're at least age 60 at the time of your remarriage (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.04/handbook-0406.html).

If you're at least full retirement age (FRA) when you start drawing divorced spousal benefits and if your ex is still living, then you could be eligible for a divorced spousal benefit rate of as much as 50% of your ex's primary insurance amount (PIA). A person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit if they start drawing at FRA. However, you couldn't receive a full divorced spousal benefit if you're eligible for Social Security benefits on your own work record. You could only be paid basically the higher of your own rate or your divorced spousal rate, and your rate would be reduced if you start drawing prior to FRA,

Best, Jerry