How to claim Social Security survivor benefits for widower with work history? Confused about options

I'm very sorry for your loss. Your dad absolutely qualifies for survivor benefits as a widower. Here's what you need to know:1. At age 65, he can collect survivor benefits based on your mother's work record immediately. These would be reduced since he's below his Full Retirement Age (FRA) of 66 and 10 months (assuming he was born in 1959).2. He can collect these survivor benefits now AND still switch to his own retirement benefits at 70 if those would be higher. This is actually a smart strategy if his own benefit at 70 would exceed the survivor benefit.3. Alternatively, if his own benefit amount (even reduced) is higher than the survivor benefit, he could take his own now and switch to survivor benefits at his FRA to get 100% of what your mom was entitled to.He'll need your mother's death certificate, their marriage certificate, both SSNs, and proof of age. I recommend making an appointment at the local SSA office rather than trying to do this by phone.

Thank you so much for this thorough explanation. Dad was indeed born in 1959. Do you know if Mom's survivor benefit would be based on what she was currently receiving, or what she would have gotten at her FRA? She started taking benefits at 65, so I think she was receiving a reduced amount. And does Dad need to decide right away or is there a grace period? Sorry for all the questions - just trying to figure out the best approach.

my husband died 2 yrs ago and let me tell u its a nightmare gettin thru to SS!!! took me 6 WEEKS of calling everyday just to talk to someone! they keep hanging up on you saying \

That sounds horrible! I'm so sorry you had to deal with that on top of losing your husband. Dad is already stressed about all the paperwork and I worry about him getting frustrated and giving up if he can't get through to them.

When my wife passed I just walked into the local SS office with our paperwork. Much easier than calling. You father can collect survivors now and switch to his own at 70 - that's what I did. The boost for waiting to 70 for his own benefits is substantial - 8% per year from his FRA.

Thanks for sharing your experience. Did you have to wait long at the office? I'd prefer to take Dad in person but he gets tired easily since Mom passed. I'm glad to hear the strategy of taking survivor benefits now and his own later worked well for you.

This is exactly what my dad had to figure out when my mom died! It's so confusing. If your dad's own benefit at full retirement age is less than your mom's, he should definitely take the survivor benefit. But if his own would be higher at 70, then he should take the reduced survivor benefit now and switch later. The SSA people won't necessarily tell him the best strategy, so you have to do the math yourself!One thing we didn't realize - if your mom was already receiving benefits, your dad is eligible for a one-time death benefit payment of $255. It's not much but every bit helps with funeral expenses.

Thank you for mentioning the death benefit - we did receive that already. It's good to know about having to figure out the strategy ourselves. Did your dad have any issues with the paperwork or proving eligibility?

After trying for THREE WEEKS to get through to SS on the phone about survivor benefits, I found a service called Claimyr that got me connected to a real SS agent in under 10 minutes. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Completely changed my experience! Got my survivor questions answered immediately instead of waiting for hours on hold or getting disconnected. The agent I spoke with even helped me figure out which benefits combo would maximize my payments.

That sounds promising! After all these comments about how hard it is to reach someone, I'm getting worried. I'll check out that video - anything to make this process less stressful for Dad right now.

I used Claimyr too when dealing with my mother's survivor benefits. Saved me from pulling my hair out after being hung up on repeatedly. The SS rep I got was actually really helpful once I could speak to someone.

Not to confuse things, but your dad needs to be careful about when he applies. There's a rule that if you apply for ANY benefit, SSA will give you whichever is higher between your retirement and survivor benefits. You have to specifically restrict the scope of application to ONLY survivor benefits if he wants to switch later. Make sure whoever helps him understands this! I made this mistake and it cost me thousands.

This is an excellent point about restricting the scope of application! When applying, your father needs to explicitly state he is ONLY applying for survivor benefits and NOT his retirement benefits. The form has specific language for this, and it's easy to miss if you're not aware of it. This preserves his right to switch to his own benefit later if it would be higher.

Wow, thank you for this warning! We would have had no idea about having to restrict the application. I'll make sure Dad understands this and that whoever helps us at SSA knows exactly what we're trying to do.

Since your mom was still working, make sure to ask about any additional earnings credits that may not be reflected in her record yet. SSA will recalculate the survivor benefit if there are recent earnings not yet posted to her record. This sometimes results in a higher benefit amount.Also, your father needs to apply for survivor benefits within the first month after her passing to avoid losing any payments. Benefits aren't automatically awarded - you must apply, and they're only retroactive to the application date (with some exceptions).If your father's health is poor, that should factor into the decision about taking his own benefits earlier vs. later. The break-even point for waiting is typically around age 82-83.

Thank you for mentioning the recent earnings - Mom did work consistently right up until her passing, so that could affect the calculation. And I had no idea about the one-month timeframe! We need to get on this immediately then. Dad is in good health generally, just struggling emotionally right now. It sounds like waiting for his own benefit until 70 might still be his best option.

dont forget theres a LIMIT on survivors too! if ur dad works + earns too much $$ they will REDUCE the survivors benefit! this happend to me when i got a better job after my husband passed. its called the earnings test. if he makes over $21,240 in 2025 they take away $1 for every $2 over the limit!!! CRAZY

This is correct. The earnings test applies to anyone receiving benefits before their Full Retirement Age. For 2025, the limit is $21,240, and benefits are reduced by $1 for every $2 earned above that amount. However, once your father reaches his FRA (66 and 10 months), the earnings test no longer applies, and he can earn any amount without reduction to benefits.

Thank you both for bringing this up! Dad is still working part-time as a consultant, so we'll need to calculate if his earnings would affect the survivor benefits. Maybe he should wait until his FRA to apply if his earnings are too high? This is getting complicated.

Something nobody has mentioned - if your mother already filed for her SS benefits early (at 65), her survivor benefit is permanently reduced. Your father would receive that reduced amount rather than what she would have received at her full retirement age. This is something I learned the hard way.

Actually, this isn't quite correct. If your mother had already filed for her own benefits early, the survivor benefit would be based on her actual benefit amount. However, there's a special rule called the

Oh, I stand corrected! Thanks for explaining that. I wish someone had told me about the limited widow's benefit when my wife passed. The SSA rep never mentioned it.

Thank you for this discussion! I had no idea the calculation could be so complicated. It sounds like we really need to talk with a knowledgeable SSA representative to understand exactly what amount Dad would receive under different scenarios.