If you've recently gotten remarried or you're about to, retirement might not be the first thing on your mind. But there's no denying that marriage has a serious effect on what your retirement will look like. You may no longer have to save for it on your own, and you'll probably have to make room for your partner's goals as well as your own.
Social Security rules get a little more complicated too, but it's not all bad news. Remarriage could help some people get even more than they were eligible for previously. It depends on several factors, including how well you understand the way the Social Security Administration calculates your benefits.
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How marriage and remarriage affect your Social Security benefits
Marriage makes you eligible for spousal Social Security benefits. These are worth up to one-half of what your partner qualifies for at their full retirement age (FRA) -- 67 for most people today. You can claim this benefit even if you've never worked a day in your life, though you must wait until your partner applies for checks before you can apply for spousal Social Security.
You can also be eligible for benefits on your ex's work record if you were married for at least 10 years before divorcing. You may do this even if your ex hasn't applied yet, as long as you've been divorced for at least two years.
It doesn't matter if your ex has remarried. You and their new spouse can both claim spousal benefits on their work record. But if you remarry, you can no longer claim spousal benefits on your ex's work record. You will have the option to claim spousal Social Security on your new partner's work record, though. If they qualify for a larger check than your former spouse, you'll get a larger benefit going forward.
Things are a little trickier if your previous spouse died, and you were claiming a survivor benefit on their work record. In that case, you may be able to continue receiving this benefit after you remarry as long as you're at least 60 at the time of remarriage (50 if you're disabled). Otherwise, you will lose this option.
You may not receive a spousal benefit, even if you're eligible for one
It's possible you won't receive a Social Security benefit based on your current or former spouse's work record if your own retirement benefit is worth more. The Social Security Administration automatically gives you the larger of the two amounts.
If you're not sure which one would give you more, you can get an estimate of your own retirement benefit and your spousal benefit through your my Social Security account. You'll need to know the benefit your spouse is entitled to at their FRA to calculate your spousal benefit. They can find this in their own my Social Security account.
If you have any questions about how remarriage will affect your Social Security benefit, reach out to the Social Security Administration for clarification. Do this as soon as possible so you can figure out how much to expect from the program per month and how much of your retirement costs you'll need to cover on your own.
