You are here: Social Security Administration > Research, Statistics & Policy Analysis > Population Projection: Spousal-Only Beneficiaries in 2050
Population Projections
- American
Indians and
Alaska Natives - Divorced
Spousal
Beneficiaries - Early
Eligibility Age
Beneficiaries - Lifetime
Low
Earners
Oldest
Old- Sporadic
Low
Earners - Spousal-
Only
Beneficiaries - Survivor-
Only
Beneficiaries - Women
& Dual
Entitlement
Spousal-Only Beneficiaries in 2050
Methodology »Released: March 2015
Next expected update: 2021
DEFINITION: Spousal-only beneficiaries are individuals who did not work at all or enough to qualify for Social Security retirement benefits on their own earnings records, but do qualify for one-half of their spouses' monthly benefit.
In 2050, we project that:
- Just over 1 percent of all beneficiaries aged 62 or older will be spousal only and more than three-fourths of spousal-only beneficiaries aged 62 or older will be women.
- The poverty rate will be higher for spousal-only beneficiaries compared with all beneficiaries aged 62 or older.
- Spousal-only beneficiaries will be disproportionately in low-earning households.
- Spousal-only beneficiaries will earn some credits by 2050, but not enough to qualify for benefits on their own records. a
Population Characteristics
Percentage with characteristic
Lifetime Shared Earnings
Percentage of spousal-only beneficiaries aged 62 or older in quintile
Median Credits Earned
Number
a. To be fully insured for Social Security retirement benefits, a worker must have at least 10 years (or 40 credits) of earnings.
SOURCE: Modeling Income in the Near Term, Version 7 (MINT7) microsimulation model using 2012 Trustees Report intermediate assumptions.