'I would like to offer a piece of advice for women who are or have been married'

"I was able to claim several months of retroactive benefits." (Photo subject is a model.)

Dear Quentin,

I read with interest the letter from a female retiree regarding Social Security ("We are more likely to be living in poverty: Social Security is a lifeline for women, so why are we ignored?") and I would like to offer a piece of advice for women who are or have been married. Because the federal government recognizes same-sex marriage, this advice should apply to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.

If your spouse or ex-spouse retires before you do, you may be eligible to collect spousal benefits. Once a person has retired, their spouse - or ex-spouse, if the marriage lasted at least 10 years and the ex-spouse has not remarried - may be entitled to receive up to 50% of the worker's benefit beginning at age 62, even if they are still working. (There are additional rules, so it's important to review the eligibility requirements.)

My Social Security payments are higher than my husband's benefits. He was downsized, and when his unemployment benefits ran out, he began collecting Social Security one year before reaching his full retirement age. This additional income enabled me to delay claiming my own Social Security benefits until 70. I was able to claim several months of retroactive benefits, so it still worked out quite well for me.

Happy Female Retiree

Related: 'I claimed Social Security at 62': At 76, I'm working at Walmart. Why do I still owe payroll taxes?

You can email The Moneyist with any financial and ethical questions at qfottrell@marketwatch.com. The Moneyist regrets he cannot reply to questions individually.

The strategy you describe - claiming 50% of your spouse's benefit at 62 and your own larger benefit at a later date - was largely eliminated by Congress in 2015.

Dear Happy,

You did good.

But your strategy may not be available to everyone reading this column. If you choose spousal benefits, you generally forego your own benefit. If you claim spousal benefits at age 62, your benefit is permanently reduced (by up to 30% of your benefit at full retirement age $(FRA)$. You generally receive the full 50% only if you wait until your FRA, and then you can receive roughly 8% extra per year if you wait until you are 70.

The strategy you describe - claiming 50% of your spouse's benefit at 62 and your own larger benefit at a later date - was largely eliminated by Congress in 2015. Those people who were born on or before Jan. 1, 1954, are the exception and may still be able to use the old "restricted application" strategy and collect only spousal benefits while delaying their own retirement benefit until age 70.

Let's suppose your own Social Security benefit will be $2,000 a month at your full retirement age, but rises to $2,640 if you claim at 70, and let's assume that your spousal benefit (50% of your spouse's Social Security benefit) would be $1,000 a month. Under existing rules, you actually may not avail of the $1,000 spousal benefit at 62 and switch to your own benefit of $2,640 at 70. You must choose one or the other.

Don't miss: 'The numbers don't lie': If I had invested my Social Security in the S&P 500 I'd have $4 million. Is the system broken?

Remarrying complicates things

However, you are right about other things. A person can receive up to 50% of the higher-earning spouse's benefit. Divorced spouses likely also qualify if the marriage lasted at least 10 years, they are currently unmarried, among other requirements. Also true: Same-sex married couples and eligible divorced spouses are treated the same as opposite-sex couples by the Social Security Administration.

Remarriage will put the kibosh in your ability to claim spousal benefits on your first spouse's record. According to the IRS: "Generally, if you remarry, benefits paid to you on your former spouse's record stop. Your SSI eligibility and payment amount may change (or stop) due to your new spouse's income and resources." (Call the IRS at 1-800-772-1213 to report your marriage to avoid being overpaid.)

That brings us to this old chestnut: Do you claim at 62, or later? Some advisers say it can work out the same in the long run whether you start taking your benefits at 62 or at 70 - it all depends on how long you live. Others advise delaying Social Security benefits as long as possible, especially if you expect to live a long life. But if you claim on your spouse's Social Security before FRA, your benefits may still be reduced.

The rules are different for survivor benefits. If you remarried after age 60 - or after the age 50 if you are disabled - as long as you were married for 10 years, you could claim survivor benefits. Surviving spouses, at FRA or older, generally get 100% of the worker's basic benefit amount, the IRS says. A surviving spouse, age 60 or older, but under FRA, gets between 71% and 99% of the worker's basic benefit amount.

Enjoy claiming at 70.

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-Quentin Fottrell