Steve_

Okay here's a question one of my relatives asked me and I'm not sure of the answer, because the website isn't too clear, I can't find the regulations and the person on the phone seemed to contradict the website.

Situation is this: person X has 40 qualifying quarters for social security. But they live outside the US and are not a US citizen. If you're not a US citizen then you have to be lawfully present in the US to get social security. That bit I understand.

However person X is married to a US citizen (and they both live outside the US). Is that US citizen eligible for spousal benefits when they reach eligibility age?

On the phone they said yes, on the website it seems to say no because person X has to apply first before the spouse can apply and person X isn't eligible.

nun

Whether you can receive SS payments as an NRA depends on where you live, but for most countries there's no problem at all, certainly not if you live in the UK.

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/EN-05-10137.pdf

Steve_

Well that's what I thought until I read the website, so it is dependent on the social security agreement, nice of them not to put that on the webpage. So both of them can apply. Didn't even ask me that on the phone.