Ask the Expert: Filing for ex's benefits

I recently called the Social Security Administration about accessing my ex-husband's Social Security benefits and was told that I couldn't do so until he had applied for benefits.

You were misinformed. The person you spoke with cited the wrong rule. You cannot file for a benefit based on your current spouse's record until he or she has applied for Social Security. But you can file for a benefit based on a former spouse's record as soon as that person is eligible for Social Security -- i.e., 62 years old -- whether he or she has applied for it. (Other requirements: Your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you're currently unmarried and at least 62 years old, and your spousal benefit is larger than the one based on your own record.)

Call again. Sometimes it takes persistence to get the right answer.

My wife and I have been married for 43 years. She has never worked. I'm 63 and plan to retire at 66. She's older than 62. Can she receive Social Security now, or must she wait until I retire?

She can't file on your record until you apply for Social Security. (See above.)

After you reach full retirement age -- in your case, 66 -- there's a way around this. It's a strategy called "file and suspend." Say Joe is 66 and doesn't want to collect his benefit yet but doesn't want his wife to have to wait for her spousal benefit. He can file for his benefit -- thus greenlighting his wife's application -- and then immediately suspend his application. The result: She starts receiving her spousal benefit, but he postpones collecting his so it keeps growing.

The bottom lineSocial Security rules depend on your marital status as well as on your age and birth date.

Websites with more information aarp.us/ruBDKC and bit.ly/pc9uFM