I will turn 67 in August and will retire in September. My wife is 69, not currently working, and drawing SS on her previous work. (She applied at age 62.) When I turned 66, FRA, I applied for spousal benefits. My SS benefits will be significantly larger than my wife's.
My plan is to file for benefits on my own in October and have my wife apply for spousal benefits. She will then receive $200-300 "excess" benefits over what she is currently receiving (at 50% of mine), and I will receive my Full Retirement Amount.
Am I correct in my assumptions? Will the fact that I'm currently drawing spousal benefits have any bearing on my future benefits? Will the fact that she filed early change the equation?
Keep up the good work,
John

Hi John,

It sounds like you've done everything fine so far, but you may want to consider waiting until age 70 to switch to your own account. Your benefit amount will be 24% higher if you file at age 70 rather than age 67, and that higher rate would carry over to your wife's widow's benefit if you die first.

That said, it sounds like you have a good understanding of the rules. The spousal benefits you receive will have no effect on your own benefit amount. Just to be sure you understand how your wife's excess spousal benefit will be figured, she will receive the difference between one-half of your full retirement age benefit (PIA) and her own PIA. That will be added to the reduced benefit she currently receives on her own account. A common misunderstanding is a belief that a person can file for a reduced benefit at age 62 on their own account, then switch to full spousal benefit at full retirement age. That isn't true.

Before switching to your own record, you may wish to consider running the maximization software available on this website. That will give you a better understanding of the best filing strategy to follow.

Best, Jerry