Welcome to the community! Just wanted to add that if you use direct deposit (which most people do), you might notice the payment shows up in your account a day or two before the official payment date, especially with early payments due to holidays. My bank usually processes SSA deposits the night before, so I often see my November payment on Monday evening even though it's "officially" scheduled for Tuesday. This is totally normal too - just depends on your bank's processing schedule.

I did not get my SS on thhis wens where is it?

Just to add one more important consideration - taxes. Survivor benefits are potentially taxable depending on your other income. If your provisional income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + 1/2 of Social Security benefits) exceeds certain thresholds, up to 85% of your benefits may be taxable. With your strategy of claiming survivor benefits now and switching to your own at 70, consider how your income might change over time and whether it makes sense to have additional tax withholding from your benefit payments. Form W-4V allows you to request voluntary withholding from Social Security.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Yara. What you're going through is unfortunately very common - the SSA system is complex and they don't do a great job of proactive outreach to eligible survivors. A few additional points that might help: **On retroactive benefits:** When you apply, specifically ask about "protective filing date" - sometimes if you made any inquiry about survivor benefits (even a phone call where you asked questions), that date can be used to extend your retroactive period slightly beyond the standard 6 months. **Documentation to bring:** In addition to what others mentioned, bring your husband's most recent Social Security statement if you have it, and any Form 1099-SSA from his benefits. This will help them calculate your exact benefit amount more quickly. **Local office vs phone:** Definitely go in person if possible. The representatives there have more tools and authority to resolve complex situations. Call ahead to make an appointment - walk-ins can mean very long waits. **One thing to verify:** Make sure to confirm whether your survivor benefit will be reduced for early claiming. Since you're past 60, you might be eligible for an unreduced survivor benefit depending on your full retirement age. The strategy of taking survivor benefits now and switching to your own at 70 is solid if your projected age-70 benefit will be higher. Don't let anyone pressure you into claiming your own benefits early - those delayed retirement credits are valuable! You've got this. It's overwhelming now, but once you get through the application process, you'll have clarity on your situation.

I just want to thank everyone for the helpful responses! I feel so much more confident now about our future plans. It seems like I've been operating under outdated information all this time. I'm going to go ahead and try to confirm with SSA directly, but it's such a relief to know that I won't have to choose between love and financial security at this stage of my life. Looks like I might be saying 'yes' sooner than I thought!

This is such wonderful news to hear! I'm a newcomer to this community but have been researching this exact topic for my own situation. I lost my husband 3 years ago at age 58 and have been hesitant about dating because I thought any future remarriage would mean losing his survivor benefits completely. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly enlightening - especially the detailed regulatory citation from Paolo. It's reassuring to see real people sharing their actual experiences with this rule working in their favor. I had no idea about the age 60 exception, and honestly, it makes so much sense from a policy perspective. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and experiences - this gives me hope that when I'm ready to consider companionship again, I won't have to sacrifice my financial stability to find happiness.

My mother-in-law went through this whole mess last year and finally just gave up trying to understand it. She's a retired Texas teacher and just accepted the lower amount rather than fighting the system. These formulas are designed to be so complicated that normal people just give up. Meanwhile Congress keeps "promising" to fix it but never does. Been going on for decades.

I'm also a retired educator dealing with WEP - taught high school math in Virginia for 32 years before retiring in 2022. What helped me was creating a detailed timeline of ALL my work history, including exact dates and earnings from every job where I paid into Social Security. I found old W-2s, tax returns, and even contacted previous employers for records. When I finally got through to SSA with this documentation, they were able to verify I actually had 25 years of "substantial earnings" which reduced my WEP penalty significantly. The key is being persistent and organized. Also, don't rely on just phone calls - the online "my Social Security" account shows your complete earnings record which you can review for accuracy. If you find errors in your earnings history, you can request corrections with proper documentation. It's frustrating but worth the effort to ensure you're getting every dollar you've earned!

No, this only affects people who were subject to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) or Government Pension Offset (GPO). These provisions reduced Social Security benefits for people who receive pensions from jobs that didn't pay into Social Security (like certain state/local government jobs, federal jobs under the Civil Service Retirement System, or foreign employment). If you never worked in one of these \

As someone who just started learning about this issue, I'm amazed by how much this law is helping people! Reading through all these experiences really shows how unfair WEP and GPO were. I had no idea that teachers and government workers were getting their Social Security benefits reduced just because they also earned a pension from their jobs. It seems like such a basic fairness issue - if you paid into Social Security, you should get what you earned, period. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences and updates. It's really helpful to see the real-world impact of this change, especially for those still waiting for their adjustments. The fact that some people are seeing increases of $800+ per month is incredible - that's life-changing money for retirees on fixed incomes!