Personal Finance Q&A: Husband and wife both eligible for SS
Q: My wife and I are both 58 and full-time practicing physicians. When we retire will both of us qualify for full benefits under Social Security? Dave Edwards, Philadelphia, Penn.
A: If you are eligible for both your own retirement benefits and for benefits as a spouse, the Social Security Administration always pays your own benefits first.
If your benefits as a spouse are higher than your own retirement benefits, you will get a combination of benefits equaling the higher spouse benefit, says a Social Security Administration spokesperson. If your benefits as a spouse are lower than your own retirement benefits, you will only receive your own.
Robert Powell is editor of Retirement Weekly, contributes regularly to Paste BN, The Wall Street Journal and MarketWatch and teaches at Boston University.