Can my wife claim Social Security survivor benefits if I die before taking SS at 70?

Yes, if you pass away before claiming your benefits at 70, your wife would be eligible for survivor benefits. The amount she'd receive would be based on what you would have received at your Full Retirement Age (FRA), plus any delayed retirement credits you earned up until your death. So if you pass at 67, she'd get what you would have received at 67 (your FRA benefit plus 8% for each year of delay). If you pass at 69, she'd get what you would have received at 69 (FRA plus 24% for 3 years of delay). She can claim survivor benefits as early as age 60, but they'll be reduced if she claims before her own FRA. At her FRA, she'd get 100% of your benefit amount calculated as explained above.

My husband passed away last year before claiming his SS too. I'm 62 and just went through all this. The SSA will calculate what ur husband would have received including any delayed retirement credits up to the date of death. But heads up they don't automatically give you the highest amount!!! You have to specifically ASK about all the different calculations they can do. Some reps know more than others.

The previous answers are correct about your wife being eligible for survivor benefits if you pass away before claiming at 70. At age 60, she would receive about 71.5% of your calculated benefit. Each month she waits after 60 adds a little more until she reaches her FRA when she gets 100%. One important consideration: If your wife has earned her own Social Security benefit, she should carefully consider when to claim each benefit. She could take the survivor benefit first and switch to her own retirement benefit later if it would be higher (or vice versa). This dual-entitlement strategy can maximize her lifetime benefits.

when my dad died my mom had to wait MONTHS to get survivor benefits! social security lost her paperwork twice and she had to reapply! she was 62 and broke and they didnt care at all. make sure your wife knows where all your papers are and your SS numbers and everything!!

When dealing with survivor benefits, getting through to SSA can be incredibly frustrating. After my spouse passed, I spent weeks trying to reach someone knowledgeable. I eventually used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an agent without the endless waiting. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Finally got my questions answered about exactly how the survivor calculation would work with delayed retirement credits. Saved me hours of frustration during an already difficult time.

Another thing to consider is if your wife will be eligible for the LUMP SUM DEATH PAYMENT. Its only $255 but hey thats better than nothing!!! Also she should apply for survivor benefits right away because they only back pay for 6 months!!! My sister waited almost a year to apply and lost out on thousands of $$$!!

I went through this last year. One thing nobody mentioned yet is that your wife will need to CALL to make an appointment to apply for survivor benefits. You cannot do it online! And getting through on the phone is nearly impossible these days. Took me 27 calls over 3 days. The local offices are still limiting in-person visits too.

I want to add some clarification about the calculation. If you die before age 70, your wife's survivor benefit would be based on what's called your "Primary Insurance Amount" (PIA) with any delayed retirement credits earned up to your death. For example: - If your monthly PIA at FRA (66) would be $2,500 - And you die at age 68 (2 years of delayed credits = 16% increase) - Her survivor benefit at her FRA would be $2,900 ($2,500 + 16%) If she claims at 60, she'd get about 71.5% of that amount, or approximately $2,073. You're making a sound decision by planning to delay until 70 as this not only maximizes your benefit but also potentially increases her survivor benefit if you pass away.

Make sure ur wife knows she CAN'T just call the main 800 number for survivor benefits!!! She has to call the local office directly but they never answer. I had better luck faxing them (yes, FAX, in 2025!) a request for them to call me back with appointment. Riduculous system.