Dear Liz: I was married for 25 years. Most of the time, I was a full-time housewife and worked part time here and there. Social Security keeps telling me that I can’t collect on my ex’s Social Security until he dies. He is 74 and I am 72. I started collecting at 62 and don’t get that much in Social Security. Is it true that I have to wait until he dies to get more?
Answer: Technically, you’re eligible for a divorced spousal benefit that’s up to 50% of your ex’s benefit if your marriage lasted at least 10 years and you haven’t remarried. If that amount is less than your own benefit, though, you wouldn’t get anything extra.
The math changes if your ex should die. Then you would be eligible for a survivor’s benefit that is equal to what he was receiving. If that amount is larger than your own benefit, you would get the larger amount.