My husband and I are both working at age 67 and 66 respectively. He decided to apply for his social security benefit based on already qualifying for maximum $ benefit.
When he did so on the telephone, the agent said: I see your wife has not applied and is still working. She advised that I apply for spousal benefit while I continue to work (my benefit is not at the maximum but may be after another 4 years of contributions).
I have read your book and all the scary scenarios where eventual benefit at age 70 turns out to now be the spousal benefit. How can I make sure I avoid signing up for something not in my best interest?

Hi,

If your husband files for his benefits then you would likely want to file a restricted application for spousal benefits only on his record. You could then draw the spousal benefits until age 70 and then switch to your own record, assuming that the amount payable on your own record is higher than your spousal rate at that time.

In order to file a restricted application for spousal benefits only, when you file your application you need to exclude retirement benefits on your own account from the scope of your application. There may be a specific question on your application that says: 'If you are eligible for both retirement benefits and spouse's benefits, do you want to delay receipt of retirement benefits?', which you would want to answer 'yes'. You can also exclude retirement benefits from the scope of your application by adding a remark in the remarks section stating: 'I wish to exclude retirement benefits on my own record from the scope of this application.' If you file online you would need to add the remark yourself, but if you file by telephone or in person just be sure to review your application to make sure that it includes a statement restricting the scope of your application.

By the way, you and your husband may want to strongly consider using the maximization software available on this website to compare your filing options prior to finalizing your applications.

Best, Jerry