Hi Larry, I'm 62 and in process of getting a divorce. This is my second (and last!) marriage. My question is- am I able to draw SS on my first husband after a period of time post divorce? My SS will only be $900 a month but I will probably start soon because I'm having medical issues but from what I've heard, it may be possible to transition to his later on. We were married 11 years. I've only been legally married to my current husband for 4 years although we've lived together for nine.
Hope you can clarify this for me!

Lisa

Hi Lisa. You just need to be unmarried in order to potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits on the record of a former spouse. You don't need to serve a waiting period after divorcing a subsequent spouse before you can potentially qualify for divorced spousal benefits on the record of a former spouse. You would, however, need to meet the other requirements for divorced spousal benefits, which are outlined in the following section of Social Security's handbook: https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.03/handbook-0311.html.

You can't apply for divorced spousal benefits without also applying for your own benefits at the same time, though, and you could only be paid essentially the higher of the two benefit rates. Furthermore, your benefit rate will be reduced if you start drawing benefits prior to your full retirement age (FRA), and the Social Security earnings test could cause some of all of your benefits to be withheld if you continue working and if you earn too much (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/whileworking.html).

You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze the options available to you in order to determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry