Can I switch from my low Social Security retirement benefit to my husband's higher benefit when he passes away?

Yes, you absolutely can switch to your husband's higher benefit if he passes away before you. These are called survivor benefits, and they're different from regular retirement benefits. The amount you'd receive would be based on what your husband was receiving when he died. One thing to consider though - if you're claiming your own benefit early at 62, you'll take a permanent reduction on YOUR benefit, but it doesn't affect survivor benefits later. You might want to talk to someone at your local SSA office to get exact numbers for your situation.

I'm a retired financial advisor who specialized in Social Security planning. The previous commenter is correct, but let me add a bit more detail. When you claim your own retirement benefit early at 62, you'll receive approximately 70% of your full retirement age (FRA) benefit amount. However, this reduction ONLY applies to your own retirement benefit. If your husband predeceases you, you would be eligible for survivor benefits equal to 100% of what he was receiving at his death. Since he's already claiming and receiving a maximum or near-maximum benefit, that's what you would receive as a survivor. These are two completely separate benefits with different rules. Taking your own benefit early does not reduce potential future survivor benefits. You would simply switch from your smaller benefit to the larger survivor benefit when the time comes. If your husband passes away while you're still receiving your own reduced benefit, you would immediately be eligible to switch to the higher survivor benefit amount.

Hi, just wanted to share that I went through something similar. I started collecting at 62 (got about $780/month) and my husband passed last year. I was able to switch to his higher benefit ($3,100/month). The SSA did it automatically after I reported his death - they look at which benefit is higher and give you that one. They don't combine them though, it's one or the other.

I've been trying to call the SSA for 2 weeks to ask a similar question about my retirement options and I keep getting disconnected or told the wait is over 2 hours! How is anyone supposed to get answers about their benefits?? This is ridiculous considering how much money they take from our paychecks our whole lives!

One additional point to consider: If your husband passes away when you are between age 62 and your Full Retirement Age (probably 67 in your case), you would have two options: 1) Take the survivor benefit immediately at a reduced rate (at 62, it would be about 81.5% of his full benefit) 2) Wait until your Full Retirement Age to receive 100% of his benefit However, since you mentioned your husband is already 78 and receiving a high benefit, even the reduced survivor benefit would likely be significantly higher than your own benefit. Each situation is unique, so when the time comes, be sure to ask the SSA representative to calculate both options for you.

my aunt went thru this. she got the higher amount but it took almost 4 months to process after my uncle died. make sure u have marriage certificate and death certificate ready. they needed like 10 different documents its crazy.

This thread has been really informative. To summarize the key points for the original poster: 1. Yes, you can claim your reduced retirement benefit now at 62 2. If your husband passes away, you can switch to his higher benefit as a survivor 3. Your early claiming doesn't affect your eventual survivor benefit amount 4. There may be a reduction to the survivor benefit if you claim it before your FRA 5. Given the large difference between your benefit and your husband's, even a reduced survivor benefit would likely be higher than your own This is a common strategy for couples with large benefit disparities. The lower-earning spouse often claims early while the higher-earning spouse maximizes their benefit (which becomes the survivor benefit).