RetireJapan

My husband is Japanese and will retire next spring (2023) at 65. He worked in the US (about 11 years) and wants to apply for his US paid social security to be part of his Japanese pension (totalization treaty). According to the US system, his official full retirement benefit age is 66.6 years old. If he were to apply now at 65, will he not receive full benefits from the US side? Is it possible to apply for the US side later? Has anyone been in this situation? Thanks in advance!

I think the totalization aspect is used if you do not otherwise qualify. If your husband has 11 years, he should qualify without the need to bring in totalization. The SS minimum is 40 quarters (10yrs), if someone is at something less than that, then totalization will come into play.

Keep in mind that SS has something called the windfall elimination provision (WEP). So if a person is getting another, separate pension that has to be declared and SS will reduce their payout according to some formula. This was not designed to 'catch' foreign retirees with pensions in other countries, and from what I've heard, 50yrs ago there were few enough foreign retirees and no info sharing like now (financial records, tax returns, etc). These days, with the long arm of the US--into local bank accounts and tax records--I would never chance trying to cheat them.

Not sure, but to delay collecting benefits (e.g., till 70 or later), you have to sign up as usual and then officially pause/delay them.

"According to the US system, his official full retirement benefit age is 66.6 years old." And that's his age of eligibility, not 65. Benefits are available earlier, but if you start that, it will be at a reduced rate, and you cannot later change your mind.