I am a retired teacher with a Social Security Report that states I could get $621 in benefits. Yes, I am aware of WEP/GPO and what it will do. I went to Soc Sec to apply for spousal support, and the customer rep told me I should apply for my own also. I told her I thought that meant I would only get the greater of the two benefits, but she said that in my case it would not benefit me to wait until 70. (I am 66 in Dec). She said my $621 would be $276 after the 40% reduction and that is all I would be eligible for. She also told me that it would only grow by $75 if I waited, but then my total benefit amount would be deducted from my spousal benefit. She ended up convincing me to apply for both, but I am not sure she is correct. My husband's full retirement payment was estimated at $1790 before GPO. If this is all wrong, can I rescind my application for my own benefit? An award letter will probably not arrive until Dec. Thank you for giving me a second opinion.

I forgot to mention that my gross pension amount is $810. The rep used $900 for computing because at the time I didn't know my gross. Thank you again.

Hi,

The effect of the WEP reduction on your own retirement rate is likely pretty close to what you were told. In other words, if your PIA before WEP would be $621 then $276 after WEP sounds about right. And if you waited until age 70 to take it, it would grow by 32% or to around $364.

If your husband is drawing his benefits and his PIA is $1790, then your potential unreduced spousal rate before GPO would be about $895, or 50% of your husband's PIA. GPO would likely result in withholding of 2/3rds of the amount of your non-covered government pension, or about $540 if your gross pension is $810. So, if you filed for spousal benefits only at age 66, it sounds like you should be eligible for about $355 (i.e. $895-$540).

In summary, then, it sounds like it might be slightly better for you to file for spousal benefits only at age 66, and then switch to your own record at age 70. If it is, you could still withdraw the application that you filed for retirement benefits and instead restrict your spousal benefit application to spousal benefits only. You may want to strongly consider using the maximization software on this site, though, in order to make sure that's accurate before going to all of the trouble.

By the way, if all of the amounts in your question are correct, your benefit rate would be the same at age 66 whether or not you file for both your own retirement benefits and spousal benefits, or if you file just for spousal benefits only. So, the only possible advantage to filing for spousal benefits only at age 66 and waiting until age 70 to file for your own retirement benefits would be if the 32% increase from delayed retirement credits would raise your own rate to more than your combined retirement & spousal rate.

Best, Jerry
Best, Jerry