Can I switch to ex-spouse's higher survivor benefits if I claim SS at 63 and he dies later?

This is a great question with a relatively straightforward answer! If you claim your own retirement benefits early (before your FRA), and your ex-spouse passes away later, you CAN still receive his full survivor benefit amount when you reach your Full Retirement Age. Your early filing of YOUR benefits doesn't permanently reduce survivor benefits. However, if you claim survivor benefits before your FRA, then those survivor benefits would be reduced. In your specific situation, you could start your own benefits at 63 (reduced), and if he passes away when you're 68, you could switch to his full $4,900 survivor benefit if you're at or past your FRA at that point. Just make sure you contact SSA immediately after his passing to initiate the switch.

The previous response has one important error. You CAN'T get the full $4,900 unless you wait until your own FRA to claim survivor benefits. If your ex passes away and you immediately claim survivor benefits before reaching your FRA, they'll be reduced permanently - up to 28.5% if claimed at 60. Here's what you should do: Take your own reduced retirement now if you need the income. If your ex passes away before you reach your FRA (66+8mo), wait until your FRA to switch to survivor benefits to get the full $4,900. If you can't wait financially, you could switch earlier but accept a permanent reduction. Remember: early filing reductions for retirement and survivor benefits are calculated separately. One doesn't affect the other.

i went thru this with my ex husband. started my benifits at 63 then he died unexpectidly 2 years later. the social sevurity office told me i could switch to his higher benifits even tho i started mine early. but they reduced it because i wasnt at my full retirment age yet. something about FRA and a reduction formula by month. CALL THE SS OFFICE!!! dont trust what people here say including me! lol

I had a similar situation and was totally confused about my options! I found a service called Claimyr that got me through to a Social Security agent in about 20 minutes when I'd been trying for days on my own. They basically hold your place in line so you don't have to stay on hold forever. I was skeptical but it worked great and I finally got clear answers about my survivor benefits situation. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Seriously saved me so much frustration after getting disconnected multiple times!

My aunt is going through this right now! Her ex-husband passed away last year and she's getting like $1200 less than what he was getting because she took survivor benefits at 62. Wish she had waited until her FRA. The reduction is permanent too which really stinks.

The WHOLE system is designed to CONFUSE US!!! I spent 20 years working in insurance and STILL couldn't figure out my own SS benefits without calling THREE TIMES and getting THREE DIFFERENT ANSWERS!!! They want us to take benefits early so they pay out LESS over our lifetimes!!! I'm 68 and STILL fighting with them about my ex-spouse benefits calculation. DOCUMENT EVERYTHING and get NAMES of who you talk to!!!

To clarify a few technical points that might help with your decision: 1. For survivor benefits, your Full Retirement Age is slightly different than for regular retirement benefits. For survivors, FRA is 66 and 2 months for someone born in 1961. 2. The reduction for taking survivor benefits early is approximately 0.396% per month before your FRA. So if you took survivor benefits at 63, that's about 38 months early, resulting in roughly a 15% permanent reduction. 3. Ex-spouse survivor benefits work the same as regular spouse survivor benefits as long as your marriage lasted at least 10 years and you haven't remarried before age 60. 4. You need to actually apply for the survivor benefits when the time comes - the switch isn't automatic even if the SSA knows about the death.

my friend said theres a lump sum death benefit too dont forget to claim that its not much but its something

One additional consideration: If your own benefit at Full Retirement Age would be more than 50% of your ex-spouse's PIA (Primary Insurance Amount), you might want to run the numbers on a different strategy. It might be worth delaying your own retirement claim and taking reduced ex-spouse benefits now (if you're eligible). The math gets complicated, but a good SSA agent can help you compare scenarios. Also, when calculating potential survivor benefits, remember that your ex receiving $4,900/month means he delayed until 70, receiving 132% of his PIA. Survivor benefits are based on that higher amount (including the delayed retirement credits), not his original PIA.