Can heirs claim unclaimed Social Security survivor benefits after both spouses have passed away?

Unfortunately, I don't think this will work out in your favor. Social Security benefits generally don't become part of someone's estate. The right to file for benefits ends when the person dies - they can't be claimed retroactively by heirs or the estate. This is different from private pensions or retirement accounts that can pass to beneficiaries. Your father-in-law's unclaimed survivor benefits essentially expired when he passed away.

So sorry for your losses. There is a small window where you MIGHT be able to claim something, but it's very limited. If your father-in-law died within 6 months of becoming entitled to survivor benefits, there might be a possibility for the estate to file for those 6 months of benefits. But from what you've described, it sounds like he was eligible for survivor benefits for years before passing, so this exception wouldn't apply. The SSA is very strict about benefits dying with the beneficiary - they don't consider these as assets that can be inherited.

My granmohter had the same situation!!! The goverment keeps this quiet becuse they dont want 2 pay ppl wat they deserve!! Its ur money and they stole it from ur family!!! The hole system is rigged against seniors!

I dealt with something similar when my uncle passed. Had to make over 40 calls to SSA before getting someone who could fully explain the policy. It's infuriating how inconsistent their phone support is - I'd get completely different answers from different agents. After weeks of trying, I finally had success using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to SSA without the endless waiting. Their service connected me to an actual SSA agent in about 20 minutes instead of the hours I'd been waiting on hold. There's a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. At least you'll get a definitive answer directly from SSA about your specific situation.

This happened to my family too! We didn't find out my dad could have claimed my mom's higher benefit until after he passed. So much money left on the table. I think the most frustrating part is that nothing in the system flags this for people.

I've worked in elder law for many years, and unfortunately, the previous commenters are correct. Per Social Security regulations, once a potential beneficiary dies, their right to unclaimed benefits dies with them. This differs from other government benefits like VA benefits, which sometimes can be claimed by survivors for a limited period. The only exception might be if your father-in-law had actually filed for survivor benefits before his death but died before receiving payment. In that specific case, there's a possibility of the estate receiving those particular payments. But for benefits he never applied for, there is no retroactive claim option for the estate or heirs. For others reading this thread: ALWAYS check with Social Security when your spouse passes away, even if you're already receiving your own retirement benefits. The survivor benefit might be higher, and you can switch to whichever is greater.

is ur father in law's estate still open??? maybe u could apply as him??? they wouldnt know, right??

This whole thread is making me realize I need to check if my own mom is getting the right benefits. She's been on her own SS since my dad died 3 years ago, but I never thought to check if his benefit would be higher. She's 76 now. Is it too late for her to switch?

After looking at the SSA's POMS (Program Operations Manual System) which is their internal policy guide, I can confirm there's a relevant section on this: GN 02301.030 - Underpayments - Living Claimant Dies Before Payment is Received. This confirms that once a person dies, they can no longer become entitled to benefits they didn't claim while alive. The only payments that can go to an estate are ones that were actually due to the beneficiary but not received before death (like if your dad filed but died before the first payment arrived). Take this as a lesson for everyone else in the family - make sure you're getting ALL benefits you're entitled to. The Social Security website has a benefits screening tool that can help identify what you might qualify for.