Larry & Friends,
Pray that all are doing well! I will be 66 July of '18. My wife is 3 years younger than me. I am still working & plan to continue to do so thru at least July of next year. I am undecided as to when I will apply for my SS benefits, but not before FRA. My wife is not working.My wife has not worked outside of the Home in many years - She was a stay-at-home- Mom for our Sons. My SS income @ FRA will be more than double what my wife would receive when she turns 70. My question, if my wife were to start to collect her reduced SS benefit now, when she reaches FRA (66& several months), will she be able to switch over to taking her spousal benefit, or will she be forever stuck with her reduced benefit? Again, my wife taking a full spousal benefit will be more than any amount of SS benefits that she would be able to receive based on her work record. Appreciate any information that You may be able to pass along. Thank You!

Joe

Hi Joe,

Your wife couldn't switch from her own reduced rate to a full spousal benefit in the future. She could, however, potentially receive additional spousal benefits when you file for your benefits, but she would keep any reduction that she took on her own record in order to start drawing early.

For example, say Jane has a full retirement age rate (PIA) of $800, but starts drawing at age 62 at a reduced rate of $600. When Jane is full retirement age (FRA) her husband, John, files for his benefits. John's PIA is $2000, so Jane's spousal benefit rate is calculated by subtracting her PIA from 50% of John's PIA. This would provide Jane with an excess spousal benefit of $200 (i.e. $2000/2 - $800), which would be added to her reduced retirement rate of $600 to give Jane a combined rate of $800.

One strategy that it sounds like you may want to consider is to have your wife file for her benefits when you reach FRA. That would permit you to file a restricted application for spousal benefits only on her record. You could then receive 50% of her PIA for 4 years before switching to your own record at age 70. And when you do switch to your own record, your wife could then file for an excess spousal benefit.

That's just one of many possible options, though, so you should strongly consider using the maximization software available on this website to compare your options and determine the best overall filing strategy for you and your wife.

Best, Jerry