Can I get survivor benefits after being married only 9 months? Husband on SSDI passed away

I'm very sorry for your loss. Good news - you do meet the 9-month marriage duration requirement for survivor benefits! Since you were married exactly 9 months when he passed, you qualify. This same rule applies whether your spouse was receiving retirement or disability benefits. At your age (66), you're at full retirement age for survivors, so you could receive 100% of his SSDI benefit amount if it's higher than your own retirement benefit. I recommend applying as soon as possible since survivor benefits can only be paid from the time you apply, not from when he passed away.

so sorry ur going thru this... my sister had similar thing happen last year. important question: was his death related to the condition he was getting disability for? if it was, i think theres some special rules that might help u qualify even if u didnt reach 9 months but sounds like u did hit 9 months anyway so probably ok

The 9-month marriage rule has a few EXCEPTIONS that might help others reading this thread: 1. If death was accidental 2. If death occurred in line of duty as active military 3. If you have a child together But since you were married exactly 9 months, you meet the standard requirement anyway. At your full retirement age of 66, you can get 100% of his benefit. Important: Get a copy of the marriage certificate and death certificate before your appointment. Also helpful to have his Social Security number ready.

If you're exactly at 9 months of marriage, you're right at the minimum requirement. When applying, make sure you have documentation showing the exact marriage date and death date. Since you're already at full retirement age for survivor benefits (which is lower than for regular retirement - currently 66 for your birth year), you have a couple of strategic options: 1. Take REDUCED retirement on your own record now and switch to the survivor benefit later 2. Take the FULL survivor benefit now and switch to your own retirement at 70 if yours would be higher with delayed credits Given that his benefit was SSDI and likely higher, option 2 is probably best for you.

My condolences on your loss. The SSA can be really difficult to reach these days! When I was trying to sort out my widow benefits last year, I kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA agent in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Saved me so much frustration during an already difficult time. For survivor benefits especially, talking to an actual person is really important because there are so many specific rules.

I AM SO SORRY BUT THE SSA RULES ARE TERRIBLE!!! My mom was married 8 months and 3 weeks when my dad died and they DENIED her!!! ONE WEEK SHORT! She fought for MONTHS and they never budged! The whole system is designed to deny benefits that people DESERVE!!!

Quick question - does anyone know if the 9 month requirement is 9 calendar months or exactly 270 days? My friend is in a similar situation and her SSA office gave her conflicting info about how they count it.

Update: I called SSA again today and finally got through after a 2.5 hour wait! The agent confirmed I do qualify for survivor benefits since we were married exactly 9 months. She said I can receive 100% of his benefit amount since I'm at full retirement age for survivors. I have an appointment next week to complete the application. Thank you everyone for your help and advice!