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rao5538
Contributor ⭐
June 29, 2026

Mary Liz Burns Video From May 12 2026

  • June 29, 2026
  • 5 replies
  • 439 views

Hello everyone,

1- Is it possible to get a transcript of the Video ?

2-I am collecting. Social Security already, my wife has turned 65 and was exploring the spousal benefit.

My question:

If my wife takes her Spousal Benefit now ( 65 years and 2 months), can she claim her Full Retirement Age Benefit at 67, which will. be higher than the Spousal Benefit she will get, or, Since she took Spousal benefit at 65 years and 2 months, she will be "stuck" with that amount even when she attains Full Retirement Age ?

Thanks for the inputs and insights

Rao

      5 replies

      fffred
      fffred
      Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
      July 1, 2026

      With the "new" rules for "deemed filing" (which are not really new, they came in sometime around 5-10 years ago) an applicant for retirement benefits is "deemed" to apply for retirement benefit on their own work record as well as applying for spousal benefit. If collecting before their FRA then both benefits are reduced per the SSA rules.

       

      Thus if your spouse's work history provides a benefit that is less than 1/2 of the spousal benefit she would obtain (both types of benefit are factored down per her age before her FRA), then she would get an additional amount of benefit based on the spousal benefit, such that her total benefit then equals her spousal benefit. This reduction in benefit stays with her as long as she is collecting her own benefit or the spousal benefit.

       

      The good news, so to speak, is that the reduction in benefit due to taking benefits before her FRA no longer is applied if she then becomes a widow (after your own death, should you pre-decease her) if she is no younger than her FRA at the time of your death. Further, if she is younger than her FRA at the time of your death there will be a reduction in her survivor's benefit but it will be based on her age at that time, not the age at which she originally took benefits. Thus the reduction factor will be less at than that for her retirement and spousal benefits.

      Edited to add:   For example, my own wife is 11 years younger than I am. By taking her spousal benefit at 62 (her FRA is 67) her benefit is about 32.5% of my own primary insurance amount (PIA - my benefit at my FRA plus any annual COLA). If she is 63 when I die then her survivor's benefit is about 83.7% of my own benefit at that time. But if I can just hang on for a few more years, until she is 66, then her survivor's benefit will be about 95% of what I had been getting. If I hold out for one more year until she is 67, her FRA, then there is no reduction in her survivor's benefit and she will get the same amount of benefit that I had been getting.

        GailL1
        GailL1
        Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
        July 2, 2026

        @fffred 

        Heck I am glad that you both are still hanging in there - let’s shoot for the goal of 100% of your benefits as your Surviving spouse, including those delayed retirement credits!  

         

        Maybe they should give a bonus if you even hang together for a long long time - instead of haviong several divorced spouses going after the same benefit - spousal or survival.  

         

        I don’t believe that Divorced spouse benefits are even limited by the Family Maximum so I wonder who might hold the record for the # of divorced spouses that a number holder has with claims on their record.  Of course, not their name but the number of divorced spouses. We could give them a 🏆

         

        🤣🤣🤣 

         

         

         

        IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
          fffred
          fffred
          Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
          July 2, 2026

          @GailL1    I used to ponder benefits for divorced persons. The rule requiring that the marriage be at least 10 years long puts a practical cap on how many ex-spouses who would be eligible for benefits. Probably on the order of 4 to 5, maybe even 6 for precocious persons. And I suppose ambitious types might even carry this on after retirement, getting in another 2 or 3 exes. Maybe there's a documentary that goes into this somewhere.

          Ciao.

            fffred
            fffred
            Conversationalist ⭐⭐⭐
            July 1, 2026

            By the way, this is likely what you are looking for (I found via a Google search)

            https://www.aarp.org/videos/social-security/6395248215112/

            Edited to add:   link also includes the transcript

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