Whether you’re a man or woman, Social Security rules can sometimes be confusing and hard to understand. Today, I’m going to go over some common misunderstandings that women have about their eligibility for benefits. And almost all these misunderstandings have to do with benefits they might be due from a spouse in addition to their own Social Security benefits.
Let me begin my clarification of these rules by making this general statement: If you have worked and earned your own Social Security benefit, you will almost always be paid that benefit first. Only after you are getting your own retirement benefit will the Social Security Administration look to your husband’s record to see if you are due any additional spousal benefits. (The big exception to this rule applies to widows, as we shall learn later in this column.)
