Can my sister claim survivor benefits from estranged husband's Social Security Disability?

Yes she could get benefits! If they were still legally married, she's entitled to survivor benefits. My cousin went thru something similar. She should contact SSA right away and bring their marriage certificate and his death certificate.

Your sister likely qualifies for widow's benefits, but there are some important details to consider: 1. At age 58, she can receive reduced survivor benefits (about 71.5% of what she'd get at her full retirement age). 2. Since she's working, the earnings test may apply - if she makes over $22,320 in 2025, benefits are reduced by $1 for every $2 earned above that limit until she reaches her full retirement age. 3. She should bring their marriage certificate, his death certificate, both their Social Security numbers, and her birth certificate when applying. 4. The fact they were separated but not divorced doesn't affect eligibility as long as they remained legally married at his death. She should apply as soon as possible - survivor benefits can only be paid from the time of application in most cases, not retroactively from the date of death.

my ex and i were seperated for 9 years b4 the divorce was final and i couldnt claim anythng on his SS. are u sure she can get benefits?? the SSA is really strict abt this stuff

Your sister absolutely should apply for survivor benefits! But let me tell you, GETTING THROUGH to Social Security these days is a NIGHTMARE. I spent THREE WEEKS trying to get someone on the phone after my husband passed. Kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in under 10 minutes. Seriously saved my sanity. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Once she actually gets through to someone, they're pretty helpful with explaining all the survivor benefit options. Just make sure she has ALL her documents ready when she calls.

I'm going through something similar right now and the whole process is SO confusing! My question is - would your sister get more if she waited until she was 60 to claim? Also, does anyone know if she'd get his full SSDI amount or only a percentage? The SSA website is so hard to understand!!!

Tell your sister to apply right away, but she should know that any benefits will be reduced by her earnings. At 58, the reduction is about 28.5% from what she'd get at full retirement age. Plus, for 2025, if she earns more than $22,320, they'll reduce benefits by $1 for every $2 over that limit. I'm a bit surprised they were separated 11 years and never divorced - that might actually work in her favor here! If they HAD divorced, she'd only be eligible for ex-spouse survivor benefits if the marriage lasted at least 10 years (which it did). One strategy might be to take reduced survivor benefits now (if the earnings test still leaves her with something) and then switch to her own retirement benefit at 70 if that would be higher. Or vice versa - take her own reduced retirement at 62 and switch to survivor benefits at her full retirement age.

sorry about your brother in law. my condolences to your family

Just wondering - was he current on any child support or alimony? That might complicate things with SS. My friend had issues with that when claiming benefits.

tell her to bring EVERYTHING to the appointment - marriage certificate, his death certificate, her ID, his social security #, tax returns if she has them. they will find any reason to make u come back with more paperwork!!

One more important point - if your sister is planning to claim retirement on her own work record eventually, she needs to understand the strategy carefully. She can: 1. Take reduced survivor benefits now and later switch to her own retirement (which would continue growing until age 70) 2. Take her own reduced retirement at 62 and later switch to full survivor benefits at her full retirement age Which option is better depends on their respective earnings records. The local SSA office can run calculations to show which would give her more money long-term. Just make sure whoever she speaks with understands she wants to compare these two strategies.

I'm sorry for your family's loss. Based on what you've shared, your sister should definitely be eligible for survivor benefits since they were still legally married when he passed away. The separation doesn't matter - only the legal marital status counts. A few things to keep in mind: At 58, she can get reduced survivor benefits (around 71.5% of what she'd receive at full retirement age). However, since she's earning about $24,000, which is above the 2025 earnings limit of $22,320, her benefits will be reduced by $1 for every $2 she earns over that limit. She should apply as soon as possible since survivor benefits generally can't be paid retroactively before the application date. She'll need their marriage certificate, his death certificate, both Social Security numbers, and her birth certificate. Given her work history, it might be worth having SSA calculate whether it's better to take reduced survivor benefits now and switch to her own retirement benefit later, or take her own reduced retirement at 62 and switch to full survivor benefits at her full retirement age. The office can run these scenarios for her.