Dear Larry,
I’m writing to you because I’ve retired as if 2018. I am now 72 and my husband is 73 years old. We will soon be married 10 years “this December”.
My husband retired early at 62 and has been collecting Social Security since. Can he collect the spousal benefits?

Hi,

Since your husband is already drawing his benefits, he could only qualify for spousal benefits if your primary insurance amount (PIA) is more that twice as much as his own PIA. A person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit rate if they start drawing their benefits at full retirement age (FRA). If your PIA is more than twice as much as your husband's PIA, he wouldn't need to wait until you've been married for 10 years to claim spousal benefits. You only need to be married for at least a year to potentially be eligible for spousal benefits. The 10 year marriage requirement applies to divorced spousal benefits.

Best, Jerry