I am 64, still working and have not yet filled for SS. My wife will be 62 in October and is considering taking her reduced benefit of approximately $680 . My question is, should she wait until I file at 66 to claim her spouse portion or should she claim her own at 62 and the change to the spouse benefit when I hit my FRA in April 2019?

Hi,

Whenever your wife files for her retirement benefits, she'll be deemed to also be filing for spousal benefits as soon as she's eligible (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/deemedfaq.html). So, if she becomes entitled to both benefits before full retirement age (FRA), both benefit rates will be reduced.

However, since you were born prior to January 2 1954, you have the option of filing just for spousal benefits only at FRA, and then switching to your own record at age 70. Your best strategy may be for your wife to file for reduced retirement benefits when you turn age 66 so that you can file for spousal benefits on her record. You could then switch to your own record at age 70, and your wife could file for an excess spousal benefit on your record at that time.

To determine if this is the best strategy in your case, you should strongly consider running the maximization software available on this website.

Best, Jerry