I am wondering about this. It seems from what I have read that a totally non-working spouse (i.e., someone who has not contributed anything to the system) will receive the same amount as if her spouse were still alive - and in fact would start receiving this at an earlier age so long as her deceased spouse would be at the applicable retirement age (i.e., so long as her age is at some minimum age, which seems to be lower than the regular retirement age.) Is this accurate?
I tried talking to the Social Security customer service, but of course, they can't give me a straight answer (my next step is to demand my Congressman get me a straight answer.) I understand that the formula could get more complicated if the spouse had some earnings (she would actually earn more than the primary amount for her spouse, as she would get her own primary benefit, up to some total maximum amount), but I suspect that if I were ever to get married, my wife would not work, so it would be a moot point for me.
I tried talking to the Social Security customer service, but of course, they can't give me a straight answer (my next step is to demand my Congressman get me a straight answer.) I understand that the formula could get more complicated if the spouse had some earnings (she would actually earn more than the primary amount for her spouse, as she would get her own primary benefit, up to some total maximum amount), but I suspect that if I were ever to get married, my wife would not work, so it would be a moot point for me.