Social Security Benefits for Non-Retirees: How to Claim Your Benefits

Social Security benefits are so simple, right? They’ve been going a long time; there aren’t that many changes, so people aren’t really paying that much attention and it’s hard enough to understand without research that many people don’t know what choices they have.

We often picture Social Security as retirement benefits, but not all children, divorced spouses, and people with disabilities are eligible under some circumstances. In fact, in 2024, 2.5 million Americans received spousal benefits and 5.5 million received surviving spouse benefits. To be able to make the most out of what Social Security does for you, it is extremely important that you understand exactly who is eligible, how much you can expect and when is a good time to start collecting these benefits.

Spousal and survivor Social Security benefits

Many Americans know that the current spouse of someone eligible to receive Social Security is entitled to benefits but may not know exactly how much that means or how rules apply. The rules for spousal benefits are pretty specific, though. To collect part of your spouse’s Social Security, you must be at least 62 years old and have not worked at least 35 years for Social Security credits (you can work fewer if your spouse earns more than you). When you qualify for the maximum benefit, it is half of what your spouse would be eligible for at full retirement age.

Survivor benefits vary a bit differently, of course. You qualify if you are at least 60 years old or if you’re between the ages of 50 and 59, you have a disability and you have been married for at least nine months before your spouse died. They also have another important piece of information for you: basically, you cannot have remarried before 60, or you end up not being eligible for those benefits.

However, the benefits aren’t just for current spouses but also for ex-spouses married at least 10 years and children under 18 or disabled children of any age. If you’re a survivor and your deceased spouse wasn’t able to collect benefits because she or he was still alive, you may be able to get the benefits at the full amount your deceased spouse could have claimed.

In fact, workers, women, and retirees can put their money to use strategically to get the most out of their social security payment, said CFA. Leslie Thompson, COO and co-founder of Spectrum Wealth Management. But that isn’t the case. Social Security or survivor’s benefits are the only benefits you are entitled to—the higher amount. There is a chance that this may influence when each state decides to fully retire if men and women have different risks and longevity.”

This means that women need to be quite cautious when making decisions about benefits. The first step to success is thinking through spending and budgeting appropriately. According to Thompson, “The biggest thing with determining how to have a successful retirement is knowing the amount you have coming in each month and also how much you are spending quarterly.” You need to know you must budget ahead so you stay within your means.

Creating a budget based on spending and tracking it is the best way to know how your money gets spent. I always recommend: spend for the rest of your life like you’re retired for a few years. That helps them realize what works and what needs to be changed in their behavior before they’re even in that role. ‘Smaller differences can be made even by shopping around for cheaper medications’.

No financial endeavor should be ignored when money from external sources isn’t coming in the doors to the Social Security Administration and your savings any longer.

Retirees will also need to take on risk in order to maintain balances and offset inflation, Thompson also advises. For those approaching and at retirement, you will need to consider how to adjust your asset allocation and how to keep purchasing power. What’s good for you is bad for me, and then again, what is good for me is really bad for you, especially for women, when it comes to inflation and your own portfolio. “Typically, with longer life expectancies, they may require a cash reserve to live longer than their male counterparts.”

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