Can I collect my deceased wife's Social Security survivor benefits at 62 while working full-time without earnings limit issues?

Sorry about your wife. I was in almost the exact same situation last year. The annual earnings limit DOES apply to survivor benefits too, unfortunately. Since you're making $78K, you'll lose a good chunk of those survivor benefits until you reach your full retirement age (probably 67ish for you). For every $2 you earn above that $23,400 limit, they take away $1 in benefits. In your case, that would probably wipe out most or all of your survivor benefit. I waited until my FRA to claim and avoided the whole earnings test mess.

The previous response is correct that the earnings limit applies, but I want to clarify something important: You actually have options here. You could claim the survivor benefit now at a reduced rate (and have some withheld due to your earnings), OR you could wait until your Full Retirement Age and get 100% of her benefit (with no earnings test). Another strategy: claim survivor benefits at FRA, then switch to your own retirement benefit at age 70 if your benefit would be higher (with delayed retirement credits). The optimal strategy depends on whether your benefit at 70 would be higher than her FRA benefit.

my condolences for ur loss. i tried claiming my husbands ss when he passed and the earning limit is a PAIN!!! they took back almost everything i got cause i was still working. wish i had known before i applied and got hit with an overpayment later. such a waste of time dealing with ssa

The earnings limit is ridiculous! It PUNISHES people who choose to keep working. Why should the government take away benefits your spouse EARNED just because YOU choose to stay employed?! It's literally penalizing productivity. And then they wonder why people retire early! The whole system is designed to force people out of the workforce. I went through this exact situation and ended up cutting back my hours just to keep my survivor benefits. TOTAL INSANITY.

To give you more specific information: The earnings test in 2025 means that if you make more than $23,400, SSA will withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above that limit. With your $78,000 income, that's $54,600 above the limit, which means they'd withhold about $27,300 in benefits. Depending on your wife's benefit amount, this could eliminate the entire survivor benefit for the year. However, there's good news: Once you reach your Full Retirement Age (FRA), the earnings test disappears completely. You can earn any amount without reduction. Plus, any benefits withheld due to the earnings test will result in a recalculation and slight increase in your benefit amount once you reach FRA. In your situation, waiting until FRA to claim survivor benefits and then switching to your own benefit at 70 (assuming yours is higher) is likely the optimal strategy, especially since you're still working full-time.

Have you tried calling SSA directly? I spent 3 hours on hold last month trying to ask almost this exact question and then got disconnected. Tried again the next day and gave up after 2 hours on hold. Their phone system is a nightmare right now with all the post-COLA adjustment questions flooding in.

jst want to point out that if u start claiming now even with the earning limit, you'll get reduced benefits FOREVER (like 30% less) because ur claiming before FRA. But if u wait till FRA u get 100% of her benefit. this is diff from regular SS where u can get more than 100% by waiting past FRA. with survivor benefits the max is 100% at FRA, so no reason to wait past that

Side note - make sure you're looking at the right earnings limit. There's a higher limit ($62,760 in 2025) in the year you reach FRA, and it only counts earnings BEFORE the month you reach FRA. After that month, no limit applies. This confused me a lot when I was going through this process!

Based on everything discussed, here's what appears to be your best strategy given your situation: 1. Continue working and wait until your FRA to claim survivor benefits (you'll get 100% of your wife's PIA) 2. At age 70, switch to your own retirement benefit (which will have grown by 8% per year from your FRA to age 70) This approach avoids the earnings test completely and maximizes your lifetime benefits. The survivor benefit will provide income from your FRA until 70, and then your maximized retirement benefit takes over from 70 onwards. It's worth having a personalized analysis done. You might consider scheduling an appointment with a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security strategies or with an SSA representative directly to confirm this is optimal for your specific situation.