Unlocking Hidden Money: Reviewing Your Social Security Benefit
I love finding money for you that you didn't know existed! It's one of my favorite parts of this job. Sometimes it's digging through the fine print of Social Security rules until something unexpected turns up. Other times it's tracking down an old retirement rollover account someone forgot about.
Over the past year, a few client conversations have reminded me just how often this happens with Social Security specifically.
The Social Security Administration won't proactively tell you about a benefit you're entitled to. You have to already know the rule and file the claim yourself.
With so many rules and unique situations, it's easy for real money to go unclaimed.
Today I want to address the three most common areas of unclaimed benefits:
Non-working spouse's eligibility for Social Security
Claiming a former or deceased spouse's benefit after divorce or death
Unpacking the recent repeal of the pension offset rules that affected public employees for decades
NON-WORKING SPOUSE ELIGIBILITY
It's incredibly common in single-income households, where one spouse worked and the other stayed home, for people to assume that a spouse who didn't earn enough work credits (40 quarters) simply isn't eligible for Social Security.
That's actually not the case.
Under the spousal benefit provision, a spouse can file for Social Security even if they never worked or never hit those 40 quarters. They're eligible for the higher of either:
100% of their own benefit (if eligible), or
Up to 50% of the working spouse's full retirement age (FRA) benefit amount
They can't collect both. They simply receive the higher of the two benefit options.
To qualify, the working spouse generally needs to already be collecting their own retirement or disability benefit, and the other spouse must be at least 62.
Claiming before full retirement age permanently reduces that amount.
Most importantly: A spouse claiming this benefit does not reduce what the primary earner receives.
SPOUSAL BENEFITS POST DIVORCE
The second scenario applies to those who were previously married.
If you were married for at least 10 years and haven't remarried, you may be eligible for a benefit based on your ex-spouse's earnings record.
The calculation works the same way as regular spousal benefits.
Social Security looks at your own work record first, and if 50% of your ex-spouse's full retirement age benefit is higher than your own, you receive the higher amount.
You don't get both combined, just whichever is greater.
Your ex-spouse doesn't even need to have filed for their own benefit yet, as long as you've been divorced for at least two years.
SURVIVOR BENEFITS AFTER A FORMER SPOUSE'S DEATH
If your former spouse has passed away, you may qualify for survivor benefits instead, ranging from roughly 71.5% up to 100% of their full benefit amount depending on your age when you claim.
This holds true even if you were divorced at the time of their passing: claiming survivor benefits on an ex-spouse's record has zero effect on what their current spouse receives, or on benefits paid to any of their other former spouses who also qualify.
Now let's shift from divorce scenarios to something just as important for married couples still planning together: survivor benefits.
IMPORTANT: SURVIVOR BENEFIT PLANNING FOR MARRIED COUPLES
Survivor benefit planning is one of the most important pieces of a Social Security strategy for married couples.
If your spouse had already filed for benefits before they passed, your survivor benefit is based on what they were actually receiving in the month they died: the full amount if you've reached your own full retirement age, reduced if you claim earlier.
But if your spouse died before ever filing, your survivor benefit is calculated as if they had delayed claiming to their full retirement age. If they had planned to delay even further, that growth carries over to you.
This is why, when we build a Social Security strategy for a married couple, we often recommend the higher-earning spouse delay their own benefit until age 70. Doing so doesn't just maximize income while both spouses are alive, it also locks in the largest possible benefit for whichever spouse outlives the other.
There's also a lesser-known strategy worth knowing. If your own retirement benefit at 70 would be larger than your maximum survivor benefit, it's often smarter to claim survivor benefits first, as early as 62. Let your own benefit keep growing through delayed retirement credits, then switch to it at 70 when it peaks.
The reverse can also make sense. If your spouse's benefit will always be higher than yours, claim your own reduced benefit now, then switch to the full survivor benefit later. Just know you can only make that switch once, and it has to happen before age 70.
REPEAL OF THE PENSION OFFSET
The third situation affects a large number of CalSTRS, CalPERS, and other government or state pension employees.
For decades, the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) significantly reduced, and often completely eliminated, Social Security benefits for public servants who also received a government pension.
That changed on January 5, 2025, when the Social Security Fairness Act was signed into law, fully repealing both WEP and GPO.
This ended nearly 40 years of reduced benefits for roughly 2.8 million public servants, including teachers, firefighters, police officers, and federal retirees.
Retroactive payments began in March 2025, with updated monthly amounts reflected by April 2025.
If you have a government or state pension that previously reduced or eliminated your Social Security benefit because of WEP or GPO, you may now be eligible for money you weren't before.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
If any of these situations sound like they could apply to you, or you're simply not sure whether you're leaving money on the table, schedule a meeting by CLICKING HERE. We'll review your specific situation together and, if needed, contact the Social Security office on your behalf.