Dear Larry,
My wife is 63, born in August 1952, and I am age 64, born in April 1952. The new law has scuttled our plans to use the “file and suspend” strategy when we reach FRA. I am the higher earner in the family by a significant amount. My wife’s full retirement benefit is estimated to be about 1/3 of mine based on her own work record. We are thinking through how we should proceed and would like your opinion on this strategy. We believe she should claim her own retirement benefit at age 66 which according to Social Security would be about $741 and allow me to file a restricted application for a spousal benefit to collect about $370 from ages 66 to 70, at which point I can switch to my own retirement benefit. She could then switch from her own retirement benefit to a spousal benefit. I would appreciate getting your thoughts on this plan.
Thank you,
Frank

Hi Frank,

Yes, the new plan you outline in your question is very likely to be your best option. However, you may wish to consider running the maximization software available on this website in order to be sure.

One minor correction I'd add is that your wife won't exactly switch to spousal benefits when you apply at age 70. Instead, she'll continue to receive her own benefit, plus an excess spousal benefit equal to the difference between one-half of your full retirement age benefit amount (PIA) and her own PIA. Since both benefits will be unreduced, they will add up to a full half of your PIA.

Best, Jerry