My wife is collecting SS from mine and started at age 62 as a reduced benefit. She needed one more 1/4 she was told. Now she has earned 5 more quarters earned. She turns 65 this October,. Will she be able to collect hers if it's higher?
Or will she just stay on mine.?

Hi,

Yes, your wife could claim her own benefits if she now has at least 40 quarters (QC) of Social Security covered work. She would then be paid essentially the higher of her own rate or her spousal rate. But, if her own rate is lower than her spousal rate, she'd be paid her own benefit plus an excess spousal benefit. The 2 benefits would then add up her current spousal rate, but she might end up getting $1 less per month in total due to dollar down rounding..

Since your wife was born after January 1 1954, when she filed for spousal benefits she was deemed to also be filing for her own Social Security retirement benefits (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/claiming.html). Therefore, she's effectively already filed for her own benefits, but Social Security would still need her to complete an additional application to establish her entitlement. Because of deeming, your wife doesn't have any option on when to start her own benefits. Her own benefits would automatically start effective with the first month after her spousal application was filed in which she met the 40 QC requirement.

I don't know if Social Security will recognize the fact that your wife is now insured for her own benefits unless she contacts them. If her own benefit rate would be higher than her current spousal rate, though, it sounds like she would probably want to file an application for her benefits as soon as possible.

Best, Jerry