Does my wife get my current SS benefit amount or just my FRA amount when I die?

Your wife would receive your current benefit amount as her survivor benefit, not the FRA amount. When you die, she's entitled to receive either her own benefit or your benefit at the time of death, whichever is higher. Since you delayed claiming and received delayed retirement credits plus COLAs, she would receive that higher amount. The only reduction would be if she claims survivor benefits before her own full retirement age. Hope that helps clear things up.

my mom just went thru this last year when dad died. she gets his FULL amount that he was getting before he died. the funeral home actually helped her file for it right after he passed! but she was already past her retirement age so didn't get any reduction.

The financial advisor is WRONG. This is why I don't trust most of them with Social Security questions - they often don't understand the nuances of the system. As a surviving spouse, your wife is entitled to the HIGHER of: 1. Your benefit amount at the time of your death (including delayed retirement credits and COLAs) 2. Her own retirement benefit BUT - and this is important - if she claims survivor benefits before her own Full Retirement Age, they will be reduced. The reduction is about 0.396% per month before her FRA. So if she claimed immediately at 64, she'd get roughly 85.6% of your current benefit. I recommend she schedule an appointment with SSA directly to discuss her options. The difference could be thousands of dollars annually.

My husband died 2 years ago and I got his full amount, not the FRA amount. But the real issue was GETTING THROUGH to SSA to file the claim!! I tried calling for 3 weeks straight, either got disconnected or was on hold for 2+ hours before giving up. Ended up having to take a day off work to go to the office and wait 3 hours.

Everyone keeps saying she gets your full current amount, but there's actually another factor: if she's working and under her FRA, earnings limit would reduce her survivor benefits. In 2025, she'll lose $1 in benefits for every $2 she earns above $23,340 (approximate amount based on current trends). Has anyone discussed the earnings test with her?

IM SO CONFUSED!!! I thought survivor benefits were ALWAYS 100% of what the deceased spouse was getting?? My sister just got widowed and she's only getting like 82% of what her husband got each month. They NEVER told her about any reductions!! Is SSA cheating her??

btw make sure ur wife applies for the one-time death benefit too, its only $255 but better than nothing lol

One other thing to consider - if your wife is still working or plans to work past age 67 (her FRA), she might want to think strategically about claiming. She could potentially take reduced survivor benefits now and switch to her own retirement benefit later if her own benefit would be higher by then (especially if she has high career earnings). Or alternatively, take her own reduced retirement benefit now and switch to the survivor benefit at her FRA. Which option is best depends on the difference between her benefit amount and your benefit amount. This is why personalized planning is so important with survivor benefits.

As someone who just went through the survivor benefit process last month when my father passed, I can confirm your wife would get your CURRENT benefit amount ($4,500), not the FRA amount. The key things we learned: 1) She gets the higher of your benefit or her own benefit, 2) If she claims before her FRA (67), it gets reduced - at 64 she'd get about 85-90% depending on exact timing, 3) The earnings test applies if she's still working, and 4) Don't forget to apply for the $255 lump sum death benefit. My biggest advice: get everything in writing from SSA because different representatives sometimes give conflicting information. Also, start the application process as soon as possible after death occurs - benefits can be paid retroactively but there's still paperwork delays.

Just wanted to add my experience as someone who works at a local SSA field office (though I can't give official advice here). What I see daily is that survivor benefit calculations are one of the most misunderstood aspects of Social Security. Your wife's financial advisor is unfortunately misinformed - this happens more often than you'd think with non-SSA professionals. To be crystal clear: she would receive your CURRENT monthly benefit amount ($4,500) as her survivor benefit, assuming she waits until her FRA to claim. The delayed retirement credits you earned by waiting until 70 DO transfer to survivor benefits - that's the whole point of delaying! If she claims at 64, yes there would be a reduction (roughly 14-15% based on her being 3 years early), but she'd still get more than your original FRA amount. The key is having SSA run the actual numbers for your specific situation rather than relying on general estimates. One tip: when she does go to SSA, bring a copy of your most recent Social Security statement and hers. It helps the representative give more accurate projections.