I have bern divorced for 5 years, but was married for 32. I am 60, my ex is 57. I was a mother of 3 and housewife only working the first 5 years of the marriage. My current monthly social security would be $425 when I reach 67.5 years. My ex was white collar, owning his own firm. I was his administrative assistant, but never earned an income. His social security should be close to the maximum. Will I receive half of that amount, and if so at what age will I have to be? Will I have to wait till he retires? He is remarried, and I am currently single ( never remarried since the divorce from him ). Would it change if I did marry?

Hi,

You can receive up to 50% of your ex-husband's primary insurance amount (PIA), which is the amount that he would receive if he starts drawing his Social Security retirement benefits at his full retirement age (FRA). However, in order to receive a full half of your husband's PIA you would need to wait until your FRA to apply for benefits.

You wouldn't have to wait until your ex starts drawing benefits to file for divorced spousal benefits, but if he's not drawing his benefits he'd need to be at least age 62 before you could qualify for divorced spousal benefits. And, if you file for either your own benefits or divorced spousal benefits prior to FRA, your benefits will be reduced for age.

If you remarry, you couldn't collect divorced spousal benefits for as long as your remarriage continues. However, if you remarry at age 60 or later it would not disqualify you from potentially being able to draw survivor benefits on your ex's record should he die before you.

You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to explore and compare your filing options so that you can determine the best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry