The maximum Social Security spousal benefit is 50% of the higher-earning spouse's full retirement age (FRA) benefit. This maximum is only achieved if the spouse waits until their own FRA to claim, not age 70. For 2024, the maximum was $1,924 per month.
The maximum spousal benefit is 50% of your spouse's retirement benefit at their FRA. If the maximum spousal benefit is greater than your retirement benefit at your FRA, you may be eligible for a spousal benefit. HAS YOUR SPOUSE APPLIED FOR THEIR RETIREMENT BENEFIT?
Yes, a spouse can receive up to half (50%) of their partner's primary Social Security benefit amount, but it's not automatic and depends on age, claiming timing, and eligibility, with the spouse receiving the higher of their own benefit or the spousal benefit, not both combined. The spousal benefit is reduced if claimed before full retirement age (FRA), though it's not reduced if caring for a young child, and it's a separate payment, not half of the worker's total, with the worker's benefit itself not reduced.
Spousal benefits are capped at 50% of the higher-earning spouse's full-retirement-age amount, even if that spouse can collect a higher amount by waiting until age 70 to file.
The biggest recent change is the Social Security Fairness Act (SSFA) of 2023, effective January 2024, which eliminated the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO), meaning your spouse's or survivor's benefits won't be reduced by your non-Social Security government pension anymore, making it much fairer. Also, the "file and suspend" strategy for spousal benefits ended for most, but the core rules remain: you get the higher of your own or your spousal benefit (up to 50% of your partner's), and you can generally switch from spousal to your own higher retirement benefit at full retirement age.
You may inherit part of or all of your partner's extra State Pension or lump sum if: they died while they were deferring their State Pension (before claiming) or they had started claiming it after deferring. they reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016. you were married or in the civil partnership when they died.
The Social Security spousal benefits loophole, primarily the "File and Suspend" and "Restricted Application" strategies, allowed a higher-earning spouse to delay their own benefits (earning delayed retirement credits) while the lower-earning spouse collected a spousal benefit based on the higher earner's record; however, a 2015 law closed these loopholes for most new applicants, meaning if one spouse claims spousal benefits, their own benefits are also considered claimed, and benefits can't be suspended to let spousal benefits accrue. A separate, less-known exception allows a spouse caring for a disabled adult child (under 22) to receive benefits even if they haven't reached retirement age, as noted by Special Needs Answers.
To apply for spousal Social Security benefits, go to ssa.gov/apply, create a my Social Security account (or sign in), and start the "Retirement/Spouse" application, providing details like your SSN, birth info, marriage date, and spouse's SSN; you can apply online, by phone, or in person at a local SSA office, but online is often easiest for initial steps, requiring personal documents like birth certificates for verification later.
A spouse can choose to retire as early as age 62, but doing so may result in a benefit as little as 32.5 percent of the worker's primary insurance amount. A spousal benefit is reduced 25/36 of one percent for each month before normal retirement age, up to 36 months.
Deemed filing essentially means that if you have your own working history and file for either spousal benefits or your own benefits, then you automatically apply for both. The Social Security Administration will pay a combination of the two benefits, with the total equaling whichever benefit is higher.
Survivor benefits are also available to spouses who are taking care of the worker's dependent minor children under the age of 16. Spousal benefits are capped at 50 percent of the worker's benefit. Survivor benefits are set at 100 percent of the deceased worker's benefit.
The maximum Social Security benefit for someone reaching full retirement age in 2025 is $4,018 per month. That means the maximum possible spousal benefit is approximately $2,000.
The "new" Social Security spousal rule is actually the end of a strategic loophole from 2016, making it impossible for most people to "file and suspend" or "restricted application" to get spousal benefits while delaying their own higher retirement benefit; instead, deemed filing means you apply for both at once and get the higher amount, but you can't earn delayed credits on your own benefit while collecting spousal benefits. A separate 2025 law (SSFA) also eliminated the Government Pension Offset (GPO) for many public servants, preventing their spouse's or survivor's benefits from being reduced by their non-covered government pension.
When your husband dies, you can receive a survivor benefit that's a percentage of his Social Security, typically up to 100% of his amount if you're at your full retirement age, or between 71.5% and 99% if you're between age 60 and full retirement age, with the amount increasing the longer you wait to apply; you get the higher of your own benefit or the survivor benefit, not both combined.
People are only eligible for a spousal benefit when their own benefit is less than half of their retired spouse's benefit, or when they seek to delay their own application for Social Security benefits based on their own work record.
The pension payout
How your beneficiary is paid depends on your plan. For example, some plans may pay out a single lump sum, while others will issue payments over a set period of time (such as five,10, or even 20 years), or an annuity with monthly lifetime payments.
With either a salary or defined benefit (DB) pension, it will typically result in a surviving spouse receiving the pension amount. For your offspring to benefit from this money, however, it requires a defined contribution arrangement to transfer your rights.