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Social Security benefits impacted by divorce

On Behalf of | May 2, 2019 | Divorce

According to the United States government, most United States workers are eligible for Social Security benefits. However, many individuals in New Jersey who have undergone divorce are not aware of how their marital breakups impact their collection of Social Security benefits in the future. Here is a look at some important Social Security benefit considerations following divorce.

First, it is possible for a woman who divorced her husband after a decade of marriage to collect benefits on his record. This can be done even if the ex-husband ended up remarrying. Still, the woman must be unmarried at the time she is trying to collect the retirement benefits. In addition, she must be 62 years or older, and her benefit amount must be lower than what she would receive by using her ex-husband’s record.

The woman in this case, however, would not be eligible for retirement benefits based on her ex-husband’s record if she remarried. Nonetheless, she would qualify for the benefits again if her new husband passed away. Also, if the woman ended up getting married and divorced multiple times, and if each marriage lasted a decade or more, she could pursue benefits on any ex-spouse’s work record — whichever one would yield the largest benefit amount.

The financial aspect of divorce can understandably be challenging to figure out. Unfortunately, an ill-informed decision may have negative repercussions for the divorcing individual long term. However, an attorney in New Jersey can help this individual to make the most personally beneficial decisions possible with the goal of protecting his or her financial situation in the years to come.