I went through this exact situation with my sister about 18 months ago. She was widowed at 55, remarried at 57, then divorced at 60. The good news is that once your divorce is final, you can immediately reapply for your survivor benefits - no waiting period at all. One thing that really helped my sister was creating a timeline document before her SSA appointment. She listed all the key dates: first marriage date, first husband's death date, when survivor benefits started, remarriage date, when benefits stopped, separation date, and divorce finalization date. The SSA representative said it made the process much smoother. Also, be aware that you might need to provide proof that your second marriage has legally ended - not just separated. My sister's divorce took longer than expected to be officially recorded in the court system, which delayed her application by a few weeks. The reinstatement process took about 6 weeks for her, and she received her first payment about 2 months after applying. Just make sure to apply as soon as you have that divorce decree in hand - every month matters since they typically don't provide retroactive payments to the divorce date, only from when you apply. Hang in there - you're almost through this complicated process!

I'm a retired Social Security claims specialist, and I wanted to add some additional context that might help with your situation. You're absolutely right to be confused by the SSA website - these remarriage and divorce scenarios are some of the most complex benefit situations. Since you were under 60 when you remarried (you mentioned you were 58), your survivor benefits correctly stopped when you married in 2020. The good news is that once your divorce is final next month, you become immediately eligible to reclaim those survivor benefits with no waiting period whatsoever. Here are a few additional points to keep in mind: 1. **Benefit restart date**: Your benefits will typically begin the month after you file your application, so don't delay once you have your divorce decree. 2. **Required documentation**: In addition to your divorce decree, make sure you have your first husband's death certificate, both marriage certificates, your Social Security card, and photo ID. 3. **Benefit amount**: Your reinstated benefit will be the same amount you were receiving before your remarriage, without any cost-of-living adjustments that occurred during your marriage years 2020-2025. However, future COLAs will apply once benefits restart. 4. **Filing strategy**: Since you're 61 now, this is also a good time to ask SSA to run projections comparing your survivor benefit to your own retirement benefit at different claiming ages. This can help with long-term planning. The process should be straightforward once you have all your documentation ready. Best of luck with finalizing your divorce and getting your benefits reinstated!

I'm dealing with a similar situation myself - just turned 62 and lost my husband 3 years ago. From my research and talking to others, here's what I've learned: The key thing is that she CAN collect survivor benefits while working, but she needs to understand the trade-offs. The earnings limit of $22,600 for 2025 is real, but it's not as scary as some people make it sound. They don't "take everything" - it's a specific formula where they withhold $1 for every $2 over the limit. What really helped me was making a simple spreadsheet comparing different scenarios: survivor benefits now vs. waiting, working full-time vs. part-time, etc. Even with the reduction and potential withholding, getting something now might be better than getting nothing while she waits. The biggest mistake I almost made was overthinking it. She doesn't have to make a perfect decision - she just needs to make an informed one. And like others have said, she can often adjust later if needed. Tell her to start by getting the actual numbers from SSA (whether online or through one of those callback services), then run some simple math on her specific situation. The anxiety often gets better once you have real data instead of just worrying about unknowns.

Your coworker is in good company - this is one of the most common Social Security dilemmas! I work with seniors on benefit planning, and here's what I typically recommend for someone in her situation: She should absolutely get her personalized benefit estimates before making any decisions. The general rule is that survivor benefits can start at 60 (or 62 if she wants to compare to her own retirement benefit), but the actual dollar amounts matter more than the general rules. One thing that might ease her anxiety: Social Security decisions aren't usually irreversible. If she starts survivor benefits and later discovers her own retirement benefit would be significantly higher, she can often switch. The "do-over" rules have some limitations, but there's more flexibility than most people realize. For the earnings limit concern - yes, it's real, but it's also manageable if you plan for it. Some of my clients intentionally keep their work income just under the $22,600 threshold, while others decide the partial benefit (even after withholding) is still worth more than waiting. My suggestion: have her call SSA (or use that callback service mentioned earlier) to get her actual survivor benefit estimate, then compare it to her projected retirement benefit. Once she has those real numbers, the decision becomes much clearer. The worst choice is often no choice at all - delaying while she could be receiving some income.

This is such a common source of confusion! I went through the exact same worry when I started collecting at 64. The key thing that helped me was understanding that Social Security has what they call a "Special Rule" for your first year of retirement. Essentially, they recognize that most people have already earned income for part of the year before they start collecting benefits, so they only look at your earnings from the month you start collecting forward. In your case, starting in September, only September-December earnings matter for 2025. Your $49,000 from January-August is completely irrelevant to the earnings test. Just make sure when you apply that you clearly indicate September as your retirement month, and you should be all set!

I just want to echo what everyone else has said - you're absolutely on the right track with your understanding! I was in a very similar situation last year when I retired at 65 in October. I had earned about $52,000 from January through September and was panicking about the earnings limit. The SSA representative I spoke with was very clear that the "first year of retirement" rule (the Special Rule) means only your post-retirement earnings count. So in your case, starting benefits in September means only September-December earnings matter for 2025. One tip: when you apply, be very specific about your retirement date and that you're stopping or significantly reducing work in September. They'll ask about your expected earnings for the remainder of the year, so have a good estimate ready for your September-December income. Also, keep good records of your earnings by month just in case they need clarification later. The whole process was much smoother than I expected once I understood how the first-year rule works. You should be in great shape!

I'm a newer teacher (only 8 years in) but I've been following this thread because I'm trying to understand how this will all work when I eventually retire. This has been SO educational! One thing I'm curious about - for those of you who have already retired, did you find that the online Social Security calculators were accurate for predicting your WEP reduction? I've been playing around with them to get a sense of what to expect down the road, but I'm wondering how reliable they actually are compared to the real calculations SSA does. Also, Beth, this might be a silly question, but did you have to do anything special to coordinate between your state teacher retirement system and Social Security, or do they handle that communication automatically once you apply for both? Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - this is exactly the kind of real-world advice that's impossible to find anywhere else!

I'm also a teacher approaching retirement (retiring in 2026 after 30 years) and this thread has been incredibly helpful! Based on all the advice here, it sounds like the consensus is pretty clear: apply 3 months before you want benefits to start, and align your SS start date with your pension start date. Beth, one thing I wanted to add that might be helpful - since you mentioned you're expecting around $2,100 from Social Security before WEP, you might want to double-check that estimate using the SSA.gov online calculator if you haven't recently. I found that my estimate had changed slightly over the past couple of years as they updated my earnings record. Also, for what it's worth, I've heard from other teachers in my district that it's worth calling SSA a few weeks after you submit your application just to confirm they have everything they need and that your WEP calculation is being processed correctly. Better to catch any issues early than to be surprised later. Congratulations on reaching retirement! After 28 years, you've definitely earned it. The timing stress will be worth it once you're enjoying your well-deserved retirement!

Thank you everyone for all the helpful responses! I'm feeling much more confident now about my retirement timeline. To summarize what I've learned: 1) I'll apply in March for benefits to start June 1st (being very specific about this date) 2) My first payment will arrive in July 3) Since I'll stop working in mid-May, I don't need to worry about June earnings 4) I need to consider tax implications of my final paycheck 5) When I apply, I'll double-check all the paperwork to make sure the start date is correct If I run into any issues reaching SSA by phone, I'll check out that Claimyr service someone mentioned. Thanks again for all your advice!

You've got a solid plan! Just wanted to add one more tip - when you apply online in March, print out or save copies of everything you submit and any confirmation numbers they give you. Also screenshot the page that shows your chosen start date of June 1st. I've seen too many cases where people had to prove what they originally requested when there were discrepancies later. Having that documentation saved me a huge headache when SSA initially processed my application with the wrong start month. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it! Good luck with your retirement!