Social Security survivor benefits at FRA - working full-time without penalties
I lost my dear wife to cancer back in November. She was 72 and had been collecting her own Social Security retirement. I'm turning 67 in June (born in 1958) and still working full-time because I need the income. My HR department is pressuring me about retirement plans, but I honestly don't know what my options are with Social Security survivor benefits. Can anyone tell me at what age I can collect 100% of my wife's Social Security benefit without being penalized for working full-time? I've heard conflicting things about this - some say I have to wait until 67, others say I can get full benefits at 66. If I am eligible soon, when should I submit my application? Does it make a difference if her benefit would be higher than what I'd get on my own record? I'm completely overwhelmed trying to figure this all out while still grieving. The one time I called SSA, I waited 2+ hours before getting disconnected.
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Cynthia Love
I'm sorry for your loss. For survivor benefits, Full Retirement Age (FRA) depends on your birth year. Since you were born in 1958, your FRA for survivor benefits is 66 and 8 months. At that age, you can collect 100% of your deceased wife's benefit without any earnings test penalties, regardless of how much you earn from working. If you're eligible in February 2025 (66 and 8 months), you can apply up to 3 months before that date. So you could apply as early as November 2024. Worth noting: survivor benefits are different from retirement benefits (where FRA would be 66 and 8 months for your birth year). It's a bit confusing since they have different rules.
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Naila Gordon
•Thank you for the clear explanation. So if I understand correctly, I need to wait until February 2025 when I hit 66 and 8 months to avoid the earnings test. Can I keep working indefinitely after that and still receive the full survivor benefit?
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Darren Brooks
my mom went thru this last year. they make u bring in death certificate, marriage certificate and whole buncha paperwork. start collecting that stuff now bcuz its a pain to get copies if u dont have them. good luck
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Rosie Harper
The previous poster is correct about your FRA for survivor benefits being 66 and 8 months. Once you reach that age, you can earn unlimited income without reduction to your survivor benefits. One strategy to consider: You could claim survivor benefits at your FRA (66+8mo) and then switch to your own retirement benefit at age 70 if your benefit would be higher with the delayed retirement credits. Or if your wife's benefit is substantially higher than yours will ever be, just stay with the survivor benefit. You should apply about 3 months before you want benefits to begin. SSA will need your wife's death certificate, your marriage certificate, possibly birth certificates, and your banking information for direct deposit. If you've already established your my Social Security account online, you may be able to apply there.
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Elliott luviBorBatman
•Not everyone can do the online application for survivors! My sister tried and the website kept telling her she had to call or visit an office. Total nightmare getting through on the phone.
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Naila Gordon
Thank you everyone for the help. This is clearer now, but I'm still confused about one thing. If I wait until I'm 70 to collect my own retirement benefit (to maximize it), can I collect my wife's survivor benefit until then? Or do I have to choose one and stick with it forever?
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Cynthia Love
•Yes, that's exactly the strategy many financial advisors recommend! You can collect survivor benefits at your FRA (66 and 8 months) with no earnings test penalty, then switch to your own retirement benefit at 70 if it would be higher. This allows your own benefit to grow by 8% per year from your FRA to age 70. Unlike spousal benefits, you CAN switch between survivor and retirement benefits whichever is more advantageous. This is one of the few remaining "claim now, claim more later" strategies still available after the 2015 law changes.
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Demi Hall
GOOD LUCK getting anyone at Social Security to answer!!! I've been trying for WEEKS to talk to someone about my husband's death benefits!!! They keep you on hold for HOURS and then disconnect!! It's CRIMINAL how they treat seniors!!!
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Mateusius Townsend
•I had the same frustrating experience trying to get through to SSA about my widow benefits. After multiple disconnections and hours on hold, I found a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a real SSA agent in under 10 minutes. Completely changed my experience. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Got all my survivor benefit questions answered in one call instead of weeks of trying. The agent even helped me understand the documents I needed to gather before my appointment.
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Kara Yoshida
my condolences on your wife. i went thru same thing when my husband passed. whatever you do make sure to ask them about the one-time death benefit payment of $255. its not much but better than nothing and they WONT tell you about it unless you ask!!!
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Naila Gordon
•Thank you for mentioning this. Every little bit helps right now.
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Elliott luviBorBatman
If your turning 67 in June you should be able to get survivors now since FRA is 66, right? My neighbor started getting her dead husbands SS at 66 and she works part time at Walmart no problem.
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Rosie Harper
•Not quite correct. For survivor benefits, FRA varies by birth year. For someone born in 1958, FRA for survivor benefits is 66 and 8 months, not 66. Also, working part-time might stay under the earnings limit, while working full-time (as the original poster mentioned) would likely exceed the limit if claiming before FRA.
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Kara Yoshida
I started receiving my deceased husband's benefits right after he died but i was already 68 so no issues with working. The whole process took about 45 days from application to first deposit. Make sure u have certified copies of everything they ask for.
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Cynthia Love
One more important point - you mentioned your HR department is pressuring you about retirement plans. Just to be clear, collecting Social Security survivor benefits doesn't require you to retire from your job. You can work indefinitely while collecting survivor benefits once you reach your FRA of 66 and 8 months. Also, when you apply, make sure SSA compares your own benefit amount to your wife's. They should pay you the higher of the two. And if you delay your own retirement benefit until 70 while collecting survivors now, be aware that you'll need to proactively apply for your retirement benefit when you reach 70 - the switch isn't automatic.
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Naila Gordon
•This is really helpful, thank you. I'm going to make an appointment with HR to clarify that I plan to continue working even after I start collecting survivor benefits. And I'll definitely mark my calendar to apply for my own benefits at 70 if that ends up being the better option.
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