Is the Spousal Benefit Boost Automatic When My Spouse Files for Social Security?

Quick question on the spousal boost.  Let’s say wife has a PIA of $1,000 and husband has a PIA of $3,000. Both are same age — wife starts at 62 and husband starts at FRA. My understanding is that when the husband turns on his SSB, the spousal boost happens automatically, but I recently saw that that is not the case. I’ve been telling people in my seminars that it usually happens automatically, but they need to watch for it. Is that not the case? Do you have to call Social Security every time?

In the scenario where the wife has a Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) of $1,000 and the husband has a PIA of $3,000, and both are the same age but the wife begins her Social Security benefits at age 62 while the husband waits until his Full Retirement Age (FRA), the process of receiving a spousal boost is not entirely automatic.

When the husband begins his benefits, the wife would be eligible for a spousal boost. This boost is calculated as half of the husband's PIA minus the wife's PIA. In this case, the spousal boost would bring the wife's total benefit up to $1,500 (half of $3,000 minus her PIA of $1,000). However, because she started benefits at 62, her benefits, including the spousal boost, would be reduced for age.

Importantly, while it might seem that the spousal boost should automatically be applied when the husband files for his benefits, this is not guaranteed. The wife should proactively call the Social Security Administration (SSA) to ensure that the spousal boost is applied. She would need to file an application for the spousal benefit, even though she cannot do this online if she has already filed for her own retirement benefit.

Although SSA might contact the wife to inform her about her eligibility for the spousal benefit, it’s not something you should rely on. The safest approach is for the wife to initiate the process by calling SSA at 800-772-1213 and making an appointment to file for the spousal benefit.

Even if she delays applying for the spousal boost until her FRA, the entitlement date will still be the month the husband started his benefits, and the spousal benefit will be reduced for age based on when she began her own benefits.

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