Married 10 Years and Divorced? You Can Collect on Your Ex’s Social Security Record and the Ex Is Never Notified. Divorced After 9 Years and 11 Months and You Get Nothing
Two women with identical ex-husbands and identical 40-year work records reach retirement age in 2026. One gets a monthly check for life, the other gets nothing. A single calendar detail in the divorce decree explains why.
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Picture two women who both reach full retirement age in 2026. Their ex-husbands had identical 40-year work records. One woman collects about $1,035 a month on her ex’s Social Security record for the rest of her life. The second woman gets nothing from her ex’s record.
About 30 days on a divorce decree separates them. The rule behind it is Social Security’s 10-year marriage requirement for divorced-spouse benefits, and it gives no partial credit. Reach 10 years and you can collect up to half of your ex’s benefit without the ex ever being told. Fall a month short and you don’t qualify.
Divorced at 9 Years and 11 Months? Your Claim Is Gone
Social Security’s operations manual (POMS RS 00202.005) says a divorced spouse must have been married to the worker “for a period of at least 10 years … immediately before the date the divorce became final.” The test is met “if the divorce became final on or after the 10th anniversary of the marriage.”
The clock keeps running until the judge’s order becomes final. The date you separated and the date you filed don’t count. If the order becomes final one month before your 10th anniversary, you lose your claim on your ex’s record for good.
Passing the 10-year bar also requires that you:
- Are at least 62
- Are not currently married
- Have an own benefit smaller than half of your ex’s full benefit (SSA pays whichever amount is higher)
If your ex hasn’t filed yet, you can still claim. The ex must be at least 62, and you must have been divorced for at least 2 continuous years.
Your Ex Is Never Notified, and Their Check Stays the Same
The Social Security Administration doesn’t contact your ex when you file, and your benefit “does not reduce their benefit. It does not affect their current spouse either.” Divorced-spouse benefits also sit outside the family maximum, so “there is no reduction if both a current and ex-spouse are collecting benefits on the same record.”
Collecting on your ex’s record costs them nothing. That’s a big reason so many eligible divorcees are surprised to learn they qualify.
What a 10-Year Marriage Pays in 2026
Assume the ex’s full-retirement-age benefit equals the 2026 estimated average for retired workers, $2,071 a month. At full retirement age, the spousal benefit can reach half of the worker’s primary insurance amount. If you claim at 62, it can drop to as little as 32.5%.
| Scenario | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Married 10 years, claims at full retirement age | $1,035.50 | $12,426 |
| Married 10 years, claims at 62 | $673.08 | Reduced for life |
| Married 9 years, 11 months | $0 | $0 |
Over 20 years, the full-retirement-age claim pays $248,520 before cost-of-living raises, and those raises do apply. The 2027 COLA is 3.6%. Waiting past full retirement age won’t make a spousal benefit any bigger, so delaying beyond that point gains you nothing.
Ex-Spouse Benefits Get Taxed Like Any Other Social Security Check
A divorced-spouse benefit is taxed like any other Social Security income under 26 U.S.C. §86. First you add up your provisional income: your modified adjusted gross income plus one-half of the social security benefits. For a single filer, the 2025 IRS worksheet sets the first threshold at $25,000.
Now say our single claimant takes $20,000 from her IRA on top of the $12,426 in benefits. Her provisional income comes to $26,213, which puts $606.50 of her benefits into taxable income. With bigger withdrawals, up to 85% of benefits can become taxable. State rules differ, and many states don’t tax Social Security at all.
Moves That Protect Your Claim Before and After the Decree
- Check the calendar before you sign. If you’re close to 10 years, waiting a few weeks for the order to become final could be worth six figures over your life.
- Think hard before remarrying. Remarriage ends your eligibility for divorced-spouse benefits on that record. Survivor benefits work differently. Suze Orman has noted on her podcast that “ten years is the minimum required for divorced survivor benefits,” and remarrying after 60 preserves them.
- Run both numbers. Compare your own record against half of your ex’s benefit before you file. SSA pays the higher amount, and the age you claim at locks in the reduction for life.
Claiming age, IRA withdrawals and the §86 thresholds all affect one another, so it’s worth running the numbers with a tax professional or trusted advisor ahead of filing.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Vilma Rios is a tax professional, tax researcher, and financial writer with more than 15 years of experience in tax and accounting. Her work spans federal tax research, financial journalism, retirement planning, investment taxation, capital gains, inherited assets, and tax education. She specializes in translating complex tax and financial topics into clear, practical information that helps individuals, families, retirees, and investors make informed decisions.
She has presented tax information through webinars, including Spanish-language tax education, and has appeared on Telemundo 47 discussing tax topics and helping viewers understand important tax-filing requirements.
Her experience also includes tax and accounting work, tax research, IRS-related matters, and public tax education. While in college, Vilma volunteered in an IRS-sponsored tax assistance program and was recognized for her community service by local and state officials.
Known as "Your Tax Geek," Vilma is passionate about making taxes easier to understand and helping people navigate an increasingly complex tax system.
