My mother is the higher-earning spouse since my father has been a stay home dad for most of my life. She will die soon at the age of 58. My father will turn 65 in the spring. Is he eligible for spousal benefits and if so how?

Hi. I'm sorry to hear about the expected loss of your mother. Your father couldn't qualify for spousal benefits while your mother is living unless she is collecting either Social Security retirement or disability benefits, and if your mother's primary insurance amount (PIA) is more than twice as much as your father's PIA. A person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit rate if they start drawing their benefits at full retirement age (FRA).

Your father is old enough to qualify for widower benefits in the event of your mother's death, but if he applies for them before he reaches his full retirement age (FRA) his widower benefit rate will be reduced for age and some or all of his benefits could be withheld if he works and earns too much (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/whileworking.html). Also, if your father is already collecting his own benefits then he'd only be eligible for additional widower benefits if your mother's PIA is higher than your father's own benefit rate.

Your father's best filing strategy depends on a number of different factors, such as whether or not he's currently drawing benefits and how his own benefit rate compares to his potential widower benefit rate. Your father should strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze all of his options so that he can determine his best strategy for maximizing his benefits.

Best, Jerry