When Social Security was initially introduced, most families only had one bread-earner, and only the working spouse qualified for retirement benefits. This created financial challenges for the spouse who didn't work (and so didn't qualify for Social Security) if the working spouse died first. Thankfully the Social Security Administration recognized this hardship and amended the law to permit wives to collect benefits based on their husband's income.

The family dynamic has changed much since Social Security was established back in 1935, but there are still many families where one spouse does not work, and hence does not qualify for retirement benefits based on their own income.

There are several requirements in order to meet the criteria for Social Security retirement benefits, like:

- Age: In order to qualify for Social Security retirement benefits, you need to be at least age 62. Other benefits, like survivor benefits or disability benefits may be received at an earlier age, but the Social Security eligibility rules require you to be age 62 before you can try for retirement benefits.

- Work Credits: You have to work in a Social Security supported job (i.e., where you contribute to Social Security by payroll tax deductions) for at least 40 credits to be eligible for retirement benefits. You can gain up to four credits per year; so in effect, you must work for 10 years to qualify for Social Security.

- Citizenship or Residency Status: Many people will be surprised to realize that you do not need to be a U.S. citizen to avail Social Security retirement benefits. People who pay into the Social Security system may qualify for benefits even if they are not U.S. nationals, however they must stay in the U.S. to actually get benefits.

Then... do spouses qualify for Social Security? Given the Social Security eligibility rules stated above, most full-time housewives will not qualify for retirement benefits per se, unless they worked for 10 years (40 credits) before they became a homemaker.

Alternatively, homemakers are entitled for benefits depending on their spouse's earnings. Social Security spousal benefits enable husbands and wives to collect retirement benefits based on their spouse's income if they result in a more benefit than their own. To be more explicit, a spouse who has not worked or who has substantially lower earnings than their husband or wife can receive up to as much as half of their spouse's entire retirement benefit.

Apart from spousal benefits, homemakers may also be eligible for Social Security survivor benefits. Widows and widowers can start receiving Social Security benefits based on their deceased spouse's earnings beginning at age 60 (age 50 if they are disabled). Children of deceased employees who are less than age 18 (19 if they are still in high school) could also qualify for survivor benefits. This is very helpful for families with small kids when the main bread earner dies at an early age.

While full-time homemakers that have never worked or who were employed for less than 10 years generally won't qualify for Social Security retirement benefits on their own, essentially, they may be eligible for benefits depending on their husband's earnings. Note: while this write-up has assumed that the homemaker is lady, Social Security is gender neutral, so men who choose to stay home to bring up the kids can also qualify for spousal and survivor benefits.

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