A Supreme Court decision made same-sex marriage legal in the U.S. in 2015. Now, the Social Security Administration (SSA) treats all marriages the same.
What counts as a marriage?
SSA looks at state law to decide if you are married. They may decide you are married if:
- You had a ceremony while your state allowed same-sex marriage
- You didn’t have a legal marriage ceremony under state law, but you live like you are married and tell people that you are married
- You had a marriage ceremony before your state allowed same-sex marriage
They will count the day you had the ceremony as the day you were married.
Why does it matter if I'm married?
Your Social Security benefits can change if you are married.
You might get more benefits if your spouse has worked more than you. You might get less benefits if your spouse has income and you are on SSI.
July 2017
PTLA #746