3 Types of Married Seniors Who Won't Get a Spousal Social Security Benefit
Key Points
Your spouse must be eligible for retirement benefits for you to be eligible for spousal benefits on their work record.
Social Security has a one-year length-of-marriage rule for most couples before you can claim spousal benefits.
You'll only get a spousal benefit if it's larger than your own retirement benefit.
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You expect a lot of financial changes when you get married, including eligibility for Social Security spousal benefits when you're old enough. While this is normally the case, there are a handful of circumstances when married individuals don't receive a spousal benefit.
Understanding these exceptions can help you set your expectations as you get closer to claiming. If you belong to any of the three groups listed below, you may need to plan to go without spousal benefits, at least for a little while.
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1. Those who are married to someone who doesn't qualify for retirement benefits
You're only eligible for spousal Social Security if you're married to a worker who qualifies for retirement benefits. To do that, they must earn at least 40 work credits throughout their career. A credit is defined as $1,890 in earnings in 2026, and you can earn a maximum of four credits per year.
If your spouse did not remain in the workforce long enough to earn their 40 credits, a spousal benefit is off the table for you. However, if you have 40 or more work credits, you'll still be able to claim your own retirement benefit. If you know how to maximize it, it could cover a good chunk of your expenses.
2. Those who haven't been married for at least one year
You typically must be married to your spouse for at least one year before you become eligible for spousal benefits on their work record. This means some newlyweds may not be able to apply for spousal Social Security benefits as soon as they tie the knot.
However, this length-of-marriage rule is waived if you're the parent of your spouse's child or if you were eligible for Social Security or railroad retirement benefits in the month before the month you got married.
3. Those who qualify for a retirement benefit that's larger than their spousal benefit
The Social Security Administration automatically gives you the larger of your own retirement benefit or your spousal benefit when you're eligible for both. That means many seniors end up with their own benefit, rather than a spousal benefit.
You don't have to work out which one is larger for yourself. The Social Security Administration should do that for you if your spouse has already signed up by the time you apply. If not, you may need to contact the Social Security Administration when your spouse applies, to ask whether a switch to a spousal benefit would give you more money than you're currently receiving.
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