Home › Social Security › Divorce and money
Direct answer: If your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you're 62 or older and unmarried, you can collect Social Security on your ex's record: up to half of your ex's full-retirement-age benefit, less if you start early. Your ex must be getting benefits, or be 62+ with the divorce final for 2 years. Alimony under agreements signed after 2018 isn't deductible or taxable.
By the numbers: A $500 divorced-spouse benefit is cut to $325 (35% less) if you start at 62 and were born in 1960 or later; 1943-1954 births get $350 (30% less). Source: SSA: Starting your retirement benefits early
“The maximum benefit for the spouse is 50% of the benefit the worker would receive at full retirement age.” — SSA (read Oct. 25, 2026)
Updated 2026-10-25
No, if your ex is 62 or older and your divorce has been final for at least 2 years in a row. Otherwise your ex must already be getting retirement or disability benefits.
No. Child support isn't deductible by the parent who pays it and isn't taxable to the parent who receives it (IRS Publication 504).
Three money rules most people get wrong in a divorce: after 10 years of marriage you can collect Social Security on your ex's record (up to half of their full benefit); alimony under agreements signed after 2018 isn't deductible or taxable; and splitting a 401(k) needs a court order called a QDRO, while an IRA can be moved tax-free under the divorce decree. Below: an estimate of your divorced-spouse benefit, the tax rules, retirement accounts, health insurance and military pay, each with the federal source (SSA, IRS Pub. 504).
Checked Oct. 25, 2026
Runs on your phone; nothing is sent. Enter each person's benefit at full retirement age. Yours is on your my Social Security statement; SSA figures your ex's when you apply.
It's worth up to half of your ex's full-retirement-age benefit (20 CFR 404.333). Payments to ex-spouses don't count toward the family maximum, the cap on what your ex's current spouse and children can get (SSA). Working before full retirement age can temporarily lower payments under the earnings limit. If you're also owed your own retirement benefit, Social Security pays your own first and adds the difference; you can't take just one, because applying for either counts as applying for both (“deemed filing”, Social Security Act 202(r)). Starting early cuts the spouse part by 25/36 of 1% a month for the first 36 months and 5/12 of 1% after that; delayed credits after full retirement age don't apply to it (404.410, 404.313). Your ex dies? A surviving divorced spouse can get survivor benefits from 60 (50 if disabled) after a 10-year marriage: see survivor benefits.
| Born | Full retirement age | $1,000 own benefit at 62 | $500 spouse benefit at 62 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1943-1954 | 66 | $750 (25.00% less) | $350 (30.00% less) |
| 1955 | 66 and 2 months | $741 (25.83% less) | $345 (30.83% less) |
| 1956 | 66 and 4 months | $733 (26.67% less) | $341 (31.67% less) |
| 1957 | 66 and 6 months | $725 (27.50% less) | $337 (32.50% less) |
| 1958 | 66 and 8 months | $716 (28.33% less) | $333 (33.33% less) |
| 1959 | 66 and 10 months | $708 (29.17% less) | $329 (34.17% less) |
| 1960 and later | 67 | $700 (30.00% less) | $325 (35.00% less) |
From SSA’s early-retirement table. Born on the 1st of a month? SSA treats you as born in the previous month (Jan. 1 counts as the previous year).
Example (the default entries): born 1964, ex's full benefit $2,400, your own $700, starting at 62: about $490 of your own plus $325 as a divorced spouse = $815 a month.
IRS Publication 504 (for 2025 returns) · IRS Topic 452: Alimony. Facts, not tax advice; state rules differ.
Update your beneficiaries after the divorce: a 401(k), IRA or life policy pays whoever is on the form. See beneficiary designations.
Divorce or legal separation is a COBRA qualifying event (29 U.S.C. 1163). A spouse who loses coverage can stay on the employer's group plan for up to 36 months (1162), paying up to 102% of the premium. COBRA covers employers with 20 or more employees (1161) (U.S. Labor Department). You or your ex must notify the plan within 60 days of the divorce (1166(a)(3)). Comparing a marketplace plan instead? See the ACA subsidy calculator.
Facts, not legal or tax advice. Property division, alimony and custody follow your state's law and your court's order. We republish SSA, IRS and federal law with dates. No partner links on this page.
Yes, if the marriage lasted at least 10 years, you're 62 or older, you're unmarried, and your own full benefit is less than half of your ex's. Your ex must be getting benefits, or be 62 or older with the divorce final for at least 2 years in a row. Payments to ex-spouses don't count toward the family maximum, the cap on what your ex's current family can get.
Up to half of your ex's full-retirement-age benefit. Starting at 62 cuts it: a $500 divorced-spouse benefit becomes $325 if you were born in 1960 or later (35% less). Waiting past your full retirement age doesn't raise it. If you have your own benefit, Social Security pays yours first and adds only the difference.
Not for divorce or separation agreements signed after 2018: the payer can't deduct it and the person receiving it doesn't report it as income. Older agreements keep the old rules (deductible and taxable) unless a later modification expressly adopts the new rule. Child support is never deductible or taxable.
Generally the custodial parent, the one the child lived with for more nights during the year. The custodial parent can release the claim to the other parent on IRS Form 8332, which covers the child tax credit but not head of household status, the earned income credit or the dependent care credit.
An IRA transferred to an ex-spouse under a divorce decree isn't a taxable transfer; it becomes their IRA. A 401(k) or pension is split with a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO); the ex-spouse pays tax on what they take out, but QDRO payouts from a workplace plan are exempt from the 10% early-withdrawal tax. That exception doesn't apply to IRAs.
Under COBRA, a divorce is a qualifying event: you can keep the same employer group plan for up to 36 months if the employer had 20 or more employees, paying up to 102% of the premium. You or your ex must tell the plan within 60 days of the divorce.
Estimates, not financial advice. Taxes, insurance, PMI and fees vary by lender, county and city; confirm with your lender, dealer and state agency before acting.