# YOU Signed Up for Social Security: Tell Me About It!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-signed-up-for-social-security-tell-me-about-it/966407>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [June 17, 2022, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-signed-up-for-social-security-tell-me-about-it/966407 "2022-06-17T22:29:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [June 22, 2022, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-signed-up-for-social-security-tell-me-about-it/966407/21 "2022-06-22T07:53:38Z")

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> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#):
>
> Both wife and I will retire in March, I will be 65, she will be 62 1/2. Are you saying that she could then start her SS in March, and I could collect spousal - based on her SS (half, I guess?) - until I decide to start collecting my own SS (and then putting her as _my_ spousal)?

My understanding is that what I did was possible due to a loophole in the rules which they have now fixed. I was allowed to defer my SS while still getting spousal benefits. There’s a term for that, check out “Get What’s Yours” for the details. I think you had to be born before 1955 or so for this to work - I don’t remember since it worked for me, and I was born well before then.  
So sorry for raising false hopes. But I stopped paying attention after I did it, and just hoped I wasn’t being misled and would get an unpleasant surprise at 70. But it worked as advertised.

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**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\
**Post date:** [June 23, 2022, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-signed-up-for-social-security-tell-me-about-it/966407/22 "2022-06-23T13:49:48Z")

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I wouldn’t call it a “loophole”, but it has gone away. The birth cutoff is Jan. 2, 1954. We had planned our retirement finances around doing this and when Congress changed the rules we felt lucky it didn’t affect us.

Note that this was just one form of 1/2 spousal SS that was changed. Others are still in effect.

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