Can I collect my deceased husband's Social Security while letting mine grow until 70?

Yes, this strategy is absolutely legitimate and is called the "restricted application" for survivor benefits. You can collect survivor benefits as early as age 60 (or 50 if disabled) while letting your own retirement benefit grow until 70, then switch to your own if it's higher. For 2025, the earnings limit for people under FRA is $22,320 for the entire year. Since you're making $19,800, you're under the limit, but just barely. If you go over, they'll deduct $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above the limit. Once you reach your Full Retirement Age, there is no earnings limit. This is one of the few remaining "claim now, claim more later" strategies after the 2015 rule changes. It ONLY works for survivor benefits now, not for spousal benefits unless you were born before January 2, 1954.

My condolensces on your loss. I did the exact sane thing when my hubby passed. Just be SUPER careful about that earnings limit - they dont tell you when youve gone over it and then BOOM they want all the money back! Happened to my cousin and it was a disaster for her finances!

Just to add some clarity to what others have mentioned: This strategy is called the "survivor strategy" and it's one of the most valuable claiming options available. The earnings limit for 2025 is $22,320 for people under Full Retirement Age (FRA), and SSA will deduct $1 for every $2 you earn above that limit. The survivor benefit is based on what your husband was receiving from SSDI. Since he was already receiving disability benefits, your survivor benefit would be roughly equal to his SSDI amount. Here's what makes this strategy powerful: your own retirement benefit continues to earn delayed retirement credits of 8% per year from your FRA until age 70. That means your benefit at 70 could be 24-32% higher than at your FRA. It's worth noting that survivor benefits taken before your FRA are reduced based on your age. At 62, you'd receive about 71.5% of your husband's full benefit amount.

i think ur overthinking this just go to ur local SS office & they'll tell you what to do. thats what i did. waited 3 hrs but the lady was super nice & set everything up 4 me.

I've been trying to get clarity on a similar situation for WEEKS. Called SSA 14 times and either got disconnected or was on hold for 2+ hours before having to hang up for other obligations. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an agent in 20 minutes. They have this video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent confirmed that yes, you can absolutely collect survivor benefits while letting your own benefit grow. They also explained that if you earn over the limit, SSA doesn't immediately cut you off - they calculate the overage and reduce benefits accordingly after you report your annual earnings. Sincere condolences on your loss. Navigating these benefits while grieving is incredibly difficult.

THEY DON'T WANT US TO KNOW THIS STRATEGY!!! My husband died in 2019 and NO ONE at Social Security told me I could do this even though I specifically asked about my options!! I found out TWO YEARS LATER from my financial advisor that I could have been collecting survivor benefits while letting mine grow!!! By then I had already claimed my own benefits early and PERMANENTLY reduced them. I'm so ANGRY about this still!!!

my friend was doing this but she worked retail during christmas and went over the limit by like $300 and they made her pay back a bunch of money so just be super careful with the math!! maybe stay like $1000 under the limit to be safe??

I think what you're describing is the restricted application strategy, and it's actually one of the few really good deals left in the Social Security system! I was able to do something similar after my wife passed. Just make absolutely sure you specify that you're applying ONLY for survivor benefits when you fill out the application. If you don't clearly indicate this, they might automatically process it as applying for all benefits you're eligible for, which would mean you'd get your own retirement benefit if it's higher and lose the ability to let it grow until 70. Also, definitely schedule an appointment rather than just walking in. The wait times have been absolutely insane lately.

does this work if ur ex husband dies too? we were married 12 years before divorce