The Surprising Reason Your Ex-Spouse Could Be Your Best Retirement Asset

Key Points

You may qualify for Social Security benefits on your ex's work record if you were married at least 10 years.

You will forfeit this option if you have remarried, though it doesn't matter if your ex has.

You'll only get a spousal benefit if it's larger than your own retirement benefit.

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You and your ex split a long time ago, and while you may still have to interact with them sometimes if you have children together, you're usually free to live separate lives once the divorce is finalized.

You may have gotten some retirement savings from your ex, thanks to a court order. But that's not the only way your former spouse could help you enjoy a more comfortable retirement. They could also be your ticket to larger Social Security checks.

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How ex-spousal Social Security benefits work

Spousal Social Security benefits are available to the current spouses of workers who qualify for retirement benefits as long as they've been married for at least one year, are the parent of their spouse's child, or were eligible for Social Security benefits in the month prior to the month they married. Ex-spouses can also qualify for these benefits, provided they were married to the qualifying worker for at least 10 years before divorcing.

You also can't be remarried, though it's OK if your ex is. Their current spouse can claim a benefit on their work record at the same time that you do. You don't need your ex's permission to apply, either.

Currently married spouses typically must wait until their partner has applied for benefits before they can claim a spousal benefit on their work record. But that's not always the case for divorced spouses. As long as you've been divorced for at least two years and are 62 or older, you can apply for benefits even if your ex has not yet.

You may not get an ex-spousal benefit, even if you qualify for one

The Social Security Administration only gives you the larger of your own retirement benefit or your spousal benefit. If you haven't worked long enough to qualify for a retirement benefit, then obviously, you'd claim the spousal benefit. But if you're dually eligible, it comes down to who has paid more in Social Security taxes over the course of their career.

Your spousal benefit is worth up to one-half of the retirement benefit your ex qualifies for at their full retirement age (FRA). This is 67 for most workers today. So this will likely be smaller than your own retirement benefit, unless your ex has earned significantly more than you.

Contact the Social Security Administration if you're unsure of whether your retirement benefit or your spousal benefit is larger. It should be able to do the math for you and will automatically give you the larger of the two checks.

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