![](https://www.marketplace.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/socialsecurity2.jpg?w=720)
Today is your last day to take advantage of a Social Security loophole
Today is your last day to take advantage of a Social Security loophole
![](https://www.marketplace.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/socialsecurity2.jpg?w=720)
There are a lot of choices to make when you file for Social Security — when to file, whether to suspend, when to collect.
A common strategy when you hit retirement age, 66, is to file and suspend — that is, deferring your pay out until you’re, say, 70, so that you can collect more benefits later. Under the current rules, this maneuver still allows your husband, wife or partner to collect a spousal benefit (as much as half of your Social Security payment) even while your benefit is suspended and growing.
Today, that spousal benefit program, which some might call a loophole, is closing. Laurence Kotlikoff, an economics professor at Boston University, literally wrote the book on getting what’s yours when it comes to Social Security. He says big money is at stake, and if you haven’t already, you should head over to the Social Security office today and get in line before the deadline passes.
Click the above audio player to hear our interview with Kotlikoff.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.