Here's How to Tell If You Qualify for Spousal Social Security Benefits

Your marital status doesn't only affect your taxes. It can also impact your Social Security benefits.

Usually, Social Security retirement benefits are based on your work record. However, spousal benefits allow a person to claim retirement benefits based on their spouse's work record. Do you qualify for spousal Social Security benefits? Here's how to tell.

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1. Your spouse must already be receiving Social Security benefits

Perhaps most importantly, your spouse must already be receiving Social Security benefits for you to claim spousal benefits. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that your spouse must be collecting Social Security retirement benefits. You can also claim spousal benefits if your spouse is receiving Social Security disability benefits – if you meet the other eligibility criteria that we'll discuss.

2. You must have been married for at least one year (with two potential exceptions)

Another key requirement is that you must have been married for a least one year to claim spousal benefits. By the way, the year must be continuous. If you were married for six months, divorced, and later remarried for six months, it won't count.

There are two potential exceptions to the one-year marriage rule, though. If you are the parent of your spouse's child who is under age 16 or disabled, you can be eligible for spousal benefits even if you weren't married for one continuous year. You can also qualify for spousal benefits if you were entitled to Social Security benefits (or benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act) in the month before the month you were married.

3. You must be at least 62 years old (with one potential exception)

To receive Social Security retirement benefits on your own work record, you must be at least 62 years old. This requirement also exists for claiming spousal benefits.

However, there's an exception to this rule that's similar to one of the exceptions to the one-year marriage rule. If you are providing care for your spouse's child who is under age 16 or who has a disability, you could receive spousal Social Security benefits before you reach age 62.

4. Your spousal benefit must be less than your benefit based on your own work history

None of the three previously mentioned eligibility criteria matters if your Social Security retirement benefit based on your own work history is greater than your spousal benefit. This makes sense when you think about it. No one would want to receive a lower retirement benefit than what they're entitled to based on their work record.

Keep in mind that your spousal benefit can only be up to half of your spouse's primary insurance amount (PIA). The PIA is the benefit a person would receive if they claim Social Security retirement benefits at their full retirement age (FRA). However, if you begin receiving spousal benefits before your own full retirement age, your benefits will be reduced – unless you're caring for a qualifying child.

Different criteria for divorced spouses

All of the above rules apply to spouses who are currently married. Spousal Social Security benefits may also be available to divorced spouses. However, the eligibility criteria are different.

The most significant difference is that you must have been married to your former spouse for at least 10 years and have been divorced for at least two years. By the way, if you signed a divorce decree giving up your rights to Social Security based on your ex-spouse's work record, the Social Security Administration (SSA) says that "those clauses in divorce decrees are worthless and are never enforced" as long as you were married for at least 10 years.

Another key requirement is that you must be currently unmarried. There are no exceptions to this rule for divorced spouses. However, you can still claim spousal benefits if your ex-spouse remarries.

Finally, divorces spouses can claim spousal benefits even if their former spouse isn't already receiving Social Security benefits. The only catch is that the former spouse must be eligible to receive Social Security retirement or disability benefits.

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