Key Takeaways:
A 64-year-old teacher weighing spousal benefits against her own retirement claim faces a deemed-filing rule that blocks the old "claim spousal now, switch later" strategy.
A 64-year-old California teacher cannot collect spousal Social Security now and switch to her own larger benefit at 70, because the deemed-filing rule treats any application as a claim for both benefits simultaneously.
"If you are eligible for both spousal and retirement benefits, you are subject to Social Security's 'deemed filing' rule: When you file for Social Security, you are deemed to be simultaneously claiming both types of benefit and will receive whichever amount is higher," Andy Markowitz, senior writer at AARP, said.
The restricted-application maneuver that once let married people collect spousal benefits while delaying their own claim was phased out by 2015 legislation and closed for good at the start of 2024, Markowitz noted. Only those born before Jan. 2, 1954 — now all at least 70 — were grandfathered in. The reader, born after that cutoff, cannot use the strategy.
The decision carries real money. Spousal benefits stop growing at the reader's full retirement age of 67, while her own benefit accrues delayed retirement credits of roughly 8 percent per year up to 70. The 2026 earnings test withholds $1 for every $2 earned above $24,480 for those below FRA, which could reduce what she actually receives if she claims while still teaching.
The January 2025 Social Security Fairness Act repealed the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset, which previously reduced Social Security benefits for public-sector workers with pensions from jobs not covered by Social Security. The reader's CalSTRS pension — she began contributing in her fourth year teaching at a southern California school district — no longer triggers those reductions.
Her benefit remains based on her own earnings record covered by Social Security. With more than 30 years of private-sector and university work behind her, her own benefit may well exceed the spousal amount. But that is not guaranteed: the spousal benefit is capped at 50 percent of her husband's primary insurance amount, and Social Security pays whichever is higher, not both.
The reader has three options, each with distinct financial consequences.
Claim now at 64. Her benefit is permanently reduced for claiming before FRA, and the earnings test could further withhold payments while she continues teaching. This makes sense only if she needs income immediately.
Wait to 67 (FRA). She receives her own retirement benefit, plus a "spousal excess" if 50 percent of her husband's FRA benefit is higher than her own. Spousal benefits do not grow past FRA — there is no delayed-retirement-credit bonus for waiting on a spousal claim the way there is for her own record.
Wait to 70. Her own benefit, boosted by roughly 8 percent per year in delayed retirement credits from 67 to 70, may surpass the 50 percent spousal benefit she would have received at 67. This path pays off if her own benefit at 70 exceeds the spousal cap.
Two exceptions to the deemed-filing rule remain: those receiving spousal benefits while caring for a child under 16 or a disabled child, and those entitled to Social Security disability payments. Neither applies to the reader's situation.
The practical step is to stress-test three numbers: her estimated benefit at 64, 67, and 70, and separately calculate 50 percent of her husband's FRA benefit. A fee-only certified financial planner can model the trade-offs, including how her current teacher's salary interacts with the earnings test. Social Security rules and earnings-test thresholds change periodically, so readers should verify current figures against the latest official Social Security Administration guidance before making a claim decision.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
