Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Can't believe you still don't get how this works. Whatever you wife or EX wife gets does not affect your amount one little bit. Neither of them get 1/2 or any other amount of YOUR personal benefit you get what you are entitled too. They get an amount based on what your benefit is at FRA but with possible deductions for the age they start collecting.
in the case of waiting to 70 for YOU to collect. you do get the full 8% per year increase in your FRA payment, so if you were going to collect $1000. at 66 then you would get $1320. at 70 assuming you did not collect till then. you would get that no matter if wives filed or not.
Meanwhile your wife and or ex could collect an amount UP TO 50% of the amount of your benefit, not your benefit itself, depending on when they choose to file from age 62, assuming you are at least 62 by the time they turn 62, up to FRA when they could qualify for 50%.
Also if you die they then get an amount up to 100% of your benefit amount including any extra credits you might have earned.
Tuborg was responding to my post in addressing what would happen if states were able to determine what percentage, if any, a spouse should get upon divorce. I'm sure he has a solid understanding of the most basic rules.
I realize I mentioned mine being reduced and should not have phrased it that way, I was only trying to explain a way to screw the ex wife if I had one another time. I am coming from a different SS perspective than many. I need to stay away from this divorce stuff to messy and don't need to.
It also sounds like we're beating a dead horse, in terms of calculating benefits. I'm outta here, for now.
Yes she picked him to marry, bad choices have consequences in the real world....liberal world is another story apparently. Whose fault is it and who should make up the SS shorfall for this? Her ex husband? Me? tax the wealthy to pay for it? It is her fault and his fault more than anyone else. Consequences are avoided by liberals and society taxed to pay for this attitude... why do jobs leave liberal states? Taxes. Why will jobs continue to lease the US? Taxes.
Huh? What does "liberal" or "conservative" have to do with the Social Security laws that have been in place for decades? It also has nothing to do with being a woman. The law says "spouse" not "wife."
Bad choices? Are you saying if a woman is married for 20 years, has 4 children, and then her husband decides to run off with his 18 year old secretary, she should suffer in her senior years because she stayed home and took care of the family? I know a woman who got cancer and her husband left her after she got a mastectomy. According to you, that's her fault.
Come to think of it, this is a bit political. The GOP keeps talking about "family values" but then wants to pass laws that discourage them.
All applicants for Social Security benefits are required to provide the names, etc. of former spouses. So, yes, SS is supposed to "reach out" to the survivors. It really shouldn't be that difficult because the earnings record is based on Federal income tax records.
They don't reach out. It's up to the ex-spouse to contact the SS office to apply for widow's benefits. And make sure to bring all necessary documents.
Death certificate
Marriage license
Divorce decree
They will take copies of all these documents for their records.
They don't reach out. It's up to the ex-spouse to contact the SS office to apply for widow's benefits. And make sure to bring all necessary documents.
Death certificate
Marriage license
Divorce decree
They will take copies of all these documents for their records.
As noted in my earlier post, SS did reach out to my sister. She didn't even know her ex had died, didn't even know where he was living at the time of his death. SS contacted her and told her to send them the marriage licence and divorce decree. They already had his death certificate. Her SS went up about $100 a month and they sent her back pay for the months between his death and when her new benefit started. And I'm talking this year, not 100 years in the past.
As noted in my earlier post, SS did reach out to my sister. She didn't even know her ex had died, didn't even know where he was living at the time of his death. SS contacted her and told her to send them the marriage licence and divorce decree. They already had his death certificate. Her SS went up about $100 a month and they sent her back pay for the months between his death and when her new benefit started. And I'm talking this year, not 100 years in the past.
Must depend on where you live. They don't do it here and they don't do it in another state. A dear friend of mine who lives in a different state had to contact them. Your sister was fortunate that someone was on the ball.
Forgot all about it but just found it lying around the house. The sample issue for the Kiplinger's Retirement Report February 2013 has a good article with good advice titled Make the Most of a Survivor Benefit. Talks about a few good strategies about how to do it. Including taking your spouses first then switching to yours at 70 under certain circumstances etc.
The following is an older article from a few years ago that is available online: Kiplinger - Interstitial
My .02 - SS is generally decided on a case by case finding, for lack of a better word. Back in the old days you had to have been married 20 years to qualify for an ex's SS benefits. Today it is 10 years. When I retired, I received a federal annuity, along with the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Got checks for both retirements. When I turned 62, the FERS converted and I was eligible for my own SS. Except that because I had a federal annuity, I was penalized x amt. But when SS did the work up, I was eligible for only part of what my SS should have been, so it was cut. Then, because my husband was drawing his SS retirement, I was eligible based on his earnings. So it brought my SS to 1/2 of what he receives each month. If he passes before me, than I will get his entire amt.
..........
Just a small side note.
I'm a retired CSRS employee but I have since found out it also applies to FERS also. There is an item called "Catch 22". I'm quoting here from an article at Catch-62 - Pay & Benefits Watch - Pay & Benefits - GovExec.com "Some military veterans who went on to civilian careers in government are getting a nasty surprise when they turn 62. Their pensions are being cut. The Catch-62, as veterans call it, affects people who served in the military after 1956 and then were hired as civilian employees under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) before Oct. 1, 1982, and who also are eligible for Social Security benefits. Veterans under CSRS who want their military service to count toward their civilian retirement benefits must make a deposit to the Civil Service Retirement fund amounting to 7 percent of their military earnings".
That applied to me. I ended up buying my military time back so when I decide to sign up for SS at 66 I will get full benefits.
Probably too late to apply to you but maybe someone else will read this and not be caught unaware.
I'm a retired CSRS employee but I have since found out it also applies to FERS also. There is an item called "Catch 22". I'm quoting here from an article at Catch-62 - Pay & Benefits Watch - Pay & Benefits - GovExec.com "Some military veterans who went on to civilian careers in government are getting a nasty surprise when they turn 62. Their pensions are being cut. The Catch-62, as veterans call it, affects people who served in the military after 1956 and then were hired as civilian employees under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) before Oct. 1, 1982, and who also are eligible for Social Security benefits. Veterans under CSRS who want their military service to count toward their civilian retirement benefits must make a deposit to the Civil Service Retirement fund amounting to 7 percent of their military earnings".
That applied to me. I ended up buying my military time back so when I decide to sign up for SS at 66 I will get full benefits.
Probably too late to apply to you but maybe someone else will read this and not be caught unaware.
As a FERS National Guard technician I can tell you that in our state they are quite vocal about this. I will admit that I dont know about other places but I know I knew about this back in 1987 when I joined. I wasn't sure if I wanted to do that so I waited a batch of years. Finally I did eventually buy back my time. Yeah it was a bit more but honestly I didn't feel overly taxed by paying it back. It turned out to be about twice as much as I would have had to pay. I paid about 4100 where it would have cost me a little more than 2000. It makes a huge difference in that when I turn 60 I will have 38 years in. Of course those 8 extra years wont count but as long as I am still in my high three will get higher. Who knows I might even get a GS11 spot for a couple of years.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Catch 62, Military time, and SS
