I am Canadian (with permanent residence status since 2003) living with my husband in U.S.A. We moved here in December 1996. I have never worked in American but am eligible for SS spousal benefits. We are considering retiring in Canada in 3 years when my husband reaches FRA. He is naturalized. He will apply for SS before we leave America. I know that I can receive spousal benefits while living in Canada because of certain Canada/U.S.A. Agreements. My question is. Do I have to apply for spousal benefits "before" I leave American.

I will be 66 in April, 2023 and my wife will be 63 next month. I ran the maximize SS numbers. It said she should apply for benefits now for herself and our 11 year old and I should apply for child-in-care spousal benefits now and let my benefits grow until I am 70 (for a number of years, my wife stayed home with the kids and I earn about 4 times what she does). I called SSA to apply, and they said child-in-care spousal benefits are only for younger spouses (under 62) and I can not do that. They said I can only apply for regular spouses benefits or benefits on my own record.

I reach my FRA August 2023. My wife took SS at 62 . When I apply for SS, will my wife automatically receive spousal benefits or does she has to do something on “ my account” ? Do I need do do something on “my account” ? Will she receive spousal bump the same month I receive my first payment? I am a user of maximize my social security.

Can you confirm the status of my application to start receiving my social security benefits on March 1, 2023?

Hi. No. We are a private company not affiliated with the Social Security Administration. However, you may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully compare and analyze all of your various options for claiming benefits in order to make sure that you've chosen the best possible strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Dear Larry,.

I turn 70 on June 20th 2023

my full retirement age date, i believe is April 7, 2024, my birthday is october 7, 1957. What date should i submit my paperwork to receive social security, to be effect april 7, 2024, i believe?

Hi Larry,

You have spoken to this question before, but my experience with SS causes me to ask about it again. I turn 70 mid February 2023. I wish to apply for max SS benefits based on being 70. The SS on-line app offers me the option of "benefit start date" staring with 6/2022 - 4/2023, in one month intervals. For max benefits that come with age 70, which one do I pick...2/2023, 3/2023, or 4/2023? I called SS THREE times and got different answers three times.

Larry in your April 11, 2021 Forbes article "Switch” From Social Security Retirement Benefits To Spousal Benefits" you mentioned back then that people can't apply for spousal benefits online if they're already drawing their own retirement benefits. The situation that is described by "Ken" in the article is exactly our situation. We are stumped on how to modify my wife's current benefit to include the additional spousal benefits. Has SSA included an online mechanism to handle this scenario? Thank you for any insight.

I'm waiting to apply for my social security until 67 years and 2 months ( which will be February 28, 2023) to receive an extra $200.00 on the month. How soon can I sign up to receive this benefit? I've been told 4 months before this date. Is this true?
Also, can I sign up without my employer knowing ? I want to work until the end of April 2023 to stay within the amount I am allowed to make.

My husband and I were both born in 1953. I began collecting retirement benefits when I turned 66, and he began collecting spousal benefits. We want to reverse that in 2023 when we both turn 70. After spending lots of time on ssa.gov and on hold with the toll-free number, we went in to our local office. We were told that our only option is a telephone appointment in six weeks. We were also told that we cannot go to a different Social Security office that might be offering in-person appointments.