Do Social Security survivor benefits reflect deceased spouse's SSDI amount or reduced retirement rate?
My wife passed away last September at 63 (would've been 64 in December). She had been receiving SSDI since age 61 after her MS made it impossible to continue working. I'll be turning 65 next month and I'm trying to figure out what my survivor benefits might look like if I need to claim them. I'm still working full-time, but my company just announced potential layoffs for Q1 2025, so I'm trying to understand all my options. My big question is: would my survivor benefits be based on what my wife was actually receiving from SSDI (approximately $2,750/month) or would SSA recalculate it as if she had taken early retirement at 61 (which would've been much lower, around $1,950/month)? I have an appointment scheduled with my local SSA office in a few weeks, but I'm anxious to get some sense of what to expect before I go in. Has anyone dealt with similar circumstances? I understand my own retirement benefits calculation, but the survivor benefits rules seem much more complicated.
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Libby Hassan
Your survivor benefits will be based on what your wife was actually receiving from SSDI ($2,750 in your example), not the reduced amount she would have received if she had taken early retirement. That's one of the advantages of SSDI - it pays at the full retirement rate regardless of age, and survivor benefits are calculated based on that amount. Just be aware that if you're still working, your survivor benefits might be reduced by the earnings test until you reach your full retirement age (probably 66+). The 2025 earnings limit is $22,320 for those under FRA, and you lose $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above that limit. When you go to your appointment, bring your wife's death certificate, your marriage certificate, and both of your Social Security numbers. Also take your most recent W-2 or tax return so they can see your current earnings.
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Levi Parker
•Thank you so much for this clear explanation! That's a relief to hear it would be based on her actual SSDI amount. I did know about the earnings test - my salary is about $95,000 so I'd lose a good portion of the benefit while working. But if I do get laid off, it's good to know I'd have the higher amount to fall back on. Do you know if there's any advantage to filing for survivor benefits now but having them suspended until I either stop working or reach my FRA? Or should I just wait to apply if/when I actually need them?
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Hunter Hampton
The previous response is mostly correct, but I want to add an important clarification. Survivor benefits in your situation will be based on your wife's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), which is the SSDI amount she was receiving. However, if you claim survivor benefits before your Full Retirement Age, they will be reduced - up to 28.5% if claimed at age 60. At 65, you'd face a smaller reduction, probably around 8-10% depending on your exact FRA. So you wouldn't get the full $2,750 unless you wait until your FRA to claim. Also, you should definitely compare your own retirement benefit to the survivor benefit. If your own benefit would eventually be higher, you might want to take the reduced survivor benefit now and then switch to your own retirement benefit at 70 when it reaches its maximum value. This strategy can maximize your lifetime benefits.
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Levi Parker
•That makes a lot of sense! My FRA is 66 and 8 months, so I'd face about a 9% reduction if I claimed survivors at 65. My own benefit at FRA would be around $3,100, and at 70 it would be about $3,875. So it sounds like if I do get laid off, I could take the reduced survivor benefit until 70, then switch to my own larger benefit? That's a strategy I hadn't considered.
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Sofia Peña
DONT TRUST WHAT SSA TELLS YOU!!!! My husband died on disability too and they tried to give me the LOWER amount at first!!! I had to FIGHT for months to get what I deserved!!!! Bring PRINTOUTS of the rules with you when you go because they will try to confuse you!!!!! They told me I could only get 82.5% of my husbands benefit since I was only 64 when I applied. Then they said I earned too much so they cut it even more!!!! The whole system is designed to cheat widows out of money!!!!! And don't even get me started on how they "lost" my paperwork TWICE!!!!! 😡😡😡
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Aaron Boston
•Sorry about your bad experience but they didnt cheat you. The 82.5% reduction is correct if you claim at 64, its in the rules. And yes the earnings test applies too if your working. Its not a conspiracy they just follow the rules. Its complicated but not a scam
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Sophia Carter
My mom just went through this last year when my dad passed. They based it on his actual SSDI payment not the reduced retirement amount. She was super worried too but it turned out ok. Make sure u bring all ur documents tho or they'll make u come back again.
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Levi Parker
•Thanks for sharing your mom's experience - that's reassuring to hear! I'm gathering all the documents now so hopefully I'll be prepared. Did your mom have any issues with the application process or was it pretty straightforward?
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Chloe Zhang
when my wife died they made me wait almost 3 months to get any money because they kept saying they needed more paperwork even after i gave them everything!!! i kept calling the 800 number every day but could never get through just sat on hold forever and then got disconnected i almost lost my house waiting for them to process everything
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Brandon Parker
•If you're having trouble getting through to SSA on the phone, you might want to try using Claimyr (claimyr.com). I was in a similar situation waiting for survivor benefits and couldn't get through to anyone. Claimyr connected me with an agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. Saved me so much frustration! They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Just mentioning it since it helped me when I was dealing with a similar situation.
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Aaron Boston
My husband was on SSDI when he passed and I got survivor benefits based on what he was actually getting not the reduced amount. But dont forget they only pay 71.5% at 60, 76.25% at 61, 81% at 62, 85.75% at 63, 90.5% at 64, 95.25% at 65 and 100% at FRA which is probably 66 and some months for you. So you wont get the full amount unless you wait till your FRA.
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Levi Parker
•Thanks for the specific percentages - that's really helpful! Since my FRA is 66 and 8 months, I'd get about 91% at my current age. Good to have that confirmed.
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Adriana Cohn
I went through this exact situation! My wife was 62 on SSDI when she passed in 2023. I can confirm they base survivor benefits on the FULL disability amount, not the reduced retirement amount. But here's what surprised me - they count my wages against the survivor benefits using the earnings test but it's my NET income after business expenses that counts, not my gross. This made a huge difference for me as I have a lot of legitimate business deductions. Make sure they calculate this correctly!
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Sofia Peña
•Are you SURE about this?????? I own a small business and SSA told me they use GROSS income for the earnings test! This would make a HUGE difference for me too!!! Can you tell me who told you this and how you proved it to them??? I think they're calculating mine wrong!!!!
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Adriana Cohn
•For W-2 employees, they use gross wages. But for self-employed people, they use net earnings from self-employment (after allowable business expenses). It's in their handbook. Bring your Schedule C when you go in to show your net profit. That's what counts for the earnings test, not your gross revenue.
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Levi Parker
Thank you all for the helpful information! I've got a much better idea of what to expect now. I'll definitely bring all the documentation mentioned (death certificate, marriage certificate, my latest tax returns, etc.) to my appointment. It sounds like I should expect my survivor benefit to be based on my wife's SSDI amount of $2,750, but reduced to about 91% of that (roughly $2,500) if I claim at age 65. Then the earnings test would further reduce it while I'm still working. I'm thinking the smart strategy might be to file the paperwork now so it's in the system, but only actually claim the benefits if I lose my job. Otherwise, I might be better off waiting until either my FRA or even taking my own benefit at 70. I'll update after my appointment in case it helps anyone else in a similar situation.
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Hunter Hampton
•That sounds like a solid plan. One small correction though - you can't just "file and suspend" survivor benefits like you described. You either apply and receive the benefits (subject to any reductions) or you don't apply. But what you can do is get everything ready so if you do lose your job, you can apply immediately. And yes, the strategy of taking survivor benefits while letting your own retirement benefit grow until 70 can be very advantageous if your own benefit at 70 would exceed the survivor benefit. This is one of the few remaining "claim now, claim more later" strategies after the 2015 law changes.
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