Can I claim Social Security survivor benefits from ex-husband who died before collecting SS?

Yes, you absolutely have options here. Since you were married to your ex for more than 10 years before divorcing, and you haven't remarried before age 60, you qualify for survivor benefits from your ex-husband's record. The key factor is that when your current husband passes away, you'll be eligible to collect whichever benefit is higher - survivor benefits from your current husband OR your ex-husband. Social Security will pay the higher of the two amounts. The fact that your ex-husband died before collecting doesn't affect your eligibility for his survivor benefits. When the time comes, contact SSA and explain both marriages. They'll calculate both potential survivor benefits and pay you the higher amount.

The previous poster is mostly right, but I want to add some important details. First, you can apply for reduced survivor benefits as early as age 60 (or 50 if disabled). Second, you should know that taking survivor benefits early doesn't prevent you from switching to your own retirement benefit later if it would be higher. A strategy many people use: take the survivor benefit at 60 (though it'll be reduced for claiming early), then switch to your own retirement benefit at your Full Retirement Age (FRA) or even at 70 when it maxes out if your own benefit would be higher. Call SSA about 3 months before you plan to file to review your options and get the exact benefit amounts. Having both records to potentially claim from gives you more flexibility.

DONT get your hopes up too much!!!! SSA makes EVERYTHING complicated. My neighbor was in almost the exact scenario (married 22 yrs to ex, remarried, both died). She's been fighting with SSA for 8 MONTHS to get her ex's higher benefit!!!! They keep saying her paperwork is "processing" but nothing EVER happens!!! She calls and calls but gets nowhere - just sits on hold for HOURS only to be disconnected!!! They even lost her marriage certificate TWICE!!! The whole system is BROKEN!!!!

not to go off topic but make sure you also get all your ducks in a row with marige certificates and death certificates. social security lost my stuff THREE times and i had to keep sending it in. so frustrating!!! make copies of EVERYTHING.

i think your mixing up SSI and SSDI. you cant get SSI from an ex husband. you need to apply for SSDI right away when he dies.

Something else to consider that hasn't been mentioned yet - the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). If you worked in a job that didn't pay into Social Security (like some government or education jobs), these provisions could reduce any survivor benefits you might receive. Do you have any work history in jobs that didn't withhold Social Security taxes? If so, that's another factor to discuss with SSA when you eventually apply.

my sis went thru this exact thing! she got MORE from her ex who made way more $$ than her 2nd husband!! she had to fill out a special form i think it was SSA-10 for survivor benefits. she said to make sure to tell them about BOTH marriages cuz they don't always put 2+2 together on their own!!

One final important point: You mentioned you're 58 now. If your current husband passes away while you're still under age 60, and you decide to claim survivor benefits from either husband, be aware that remarrying before age 60 would make you ineligible for survivor benefits from either previous husband. However, if you wait until after age 60 to remarry, you preserve your right to survivor benefits from previous marriages. Just something to keep in mind for future planning.

Just wanted to add one more resource that might help with your planning. The SSA website has a retirement estimator tool where you can get an estimate of your own future benefits, and you can also request a Social Security Statement that shows your complete earnings history. This can help you compare what your own retirement benefit might be versus potential survivor benefits. Also, since you're 58, you're getting close to the age where these decisions become more concrete. I'd recommend keeping detailed records of both your marriages (dates, locations, etc.) and your ex-husband's and current husband's Social Security numbers if you have them. This will make the application process much smoother when the time comes. The fact that you're thinking about this now while you have time to plan is really smart. Many people don't realize they have these options until they're already dealing with loss and grief.

I'm new to this community but wanted to share something that might be helpful. My aunt was in a very similar situation - divorced after 18 years, remarried, and both her ex and current husband passed away. One thing she learned that wasn't mentioned here is that you can actually get an estimate of what your survivor benefits would be from each spouse before you need to make any decisions. When you're getting closer to age 60, you can contact SSA and ask them to run benefit estimates based on both records. This helped her understand the dollar amounts involved and plan accordingly. Also, she found it really helpful to work with the same SSA representative throughout the process rather than calling the general number each time and getting different people. Once she got connected with someone knowledgeable about divorced spouse survivor benefits, she asked for their direct extension and it made everything much smoother. Your situation gives you valuable flexibility that many people don't have. The hardest part is often just navigating the SSA system itself, but the legal framework is actually pretty clear in your favor.

Welcome to the community! I'm also relatively new here but have been learning so much from everyone's experiences. Your situation sounds really well thought out - it's great that you're planning ahead like this. One thing I wanted to mention that I don't think has been covered yet is the timing of when benefits get calculated. Since your ex-husband passed away at 63 before collecting, his survivor benefit will be based on what his benefit would have been at his Full Retirement Age, not reduced for early claiming. This could actually work in your favor compared to if he had started collecting early. Also, I've seen several people mention keeping good records, and I can't stress this enough. Even though it's been years since your divorce, try to track down not just your marriage certificate, but also your divorce decree. SSA will want to see both documents to verify the length of your marriage and that you meet all the requirements. The fact that you have potentially two different survivor benefit options really does give you a lot of financial security planning opportunities that many people don't have. Best of luck with everything!

As someone who's dealt with Social Security benefits for years, I wanted to emphasize something that's been touched on but bears repeating - documentation is absolutely crucial for divorced spouse survivor benefits. SSA tends to scrutinize these claims more heavily than regular survivor benefits. Beyond the marriage certificate and divorce decree that others mentioned, also gather any documentation showing your ex-husband's full name, Social Security number, and date of death if you have access to it. If you don't have his SSN, his full name and date of birth should be sufficient for SSA to locate his record. One more strategic point: since you're 58 and planning ahead, consider that if you do become widowed from your current marriage before age 60, you might want to consult with a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security claiming strategies. The timing of when you claim survivor benefits versus your own retirement benefit can have significant long-term financial implications, and the "optimal" strategy depends on your specific financial situation and the benefit amounts involved. You're really smart to be thinking through all these scenarios now while you have time to prepare!