Social Security survivor benefits not showing up on my SSA account - should I call?
I'm 54 and lost my husband unexpectedly about 3 months ago at age 63. He hadn't filed for his Social Security benefits yet. I've been trying to get organized on the financial side, and when I logged into my mySocialSecurity account, I only see information about my own retirement benefits - nothing about survivor benefits I might be eligible for in the future. I did contact SSA shortly after he passed to notify them and collect the $255 death benefit, so I know they have his death recorded in their system. I'm not planning to claim survivor benefits for several years, but shouldn't there be SOME indication on my account about potential survivor benefits? Do I need to call SSA to make sure everything is properly linked in their system? Getting through on the phone is such a nightmare that I want to make sure it's necessary before I try.
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Dylan Campbell
The SSA website doesn't typically show survivor benefit information even when everything is properly set up in their system. Your own retirement benefit information will be the only thing visible on your mySocialSecurity account. This is normal and doesn't indicate any problems with your eligibility for survivor benefits. When you're ready to apply for survivor benefits, you'll need to contact SSA directly anyway (can't do it online), and they'll calculate your benefit amount at that time based on your husband's earnings record. As long as they processed the death notification and $255 payment, they have the record of his passing connected to your record.
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StarStrider
•That's a huge relief! I was worried there was some kind of error in their system that would cause problems down the road. Thanks for clarifying that this is normal.
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Sofia Torres
Same thing happened to me. Lost my wife last year and nothing about survivor stuff shows up on my account. Called and the ssa person said thats normal. Dont worry about it đź‘Ť
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StarStrider
•Thank you! It's comforting to know someone else has been through the same situation. Sorry for your loss.
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Dmitry Sokolov
I think you SHOULD call just to make sure everything is properly set up!!! My sister went through this and when she finally went to apply for survivors they had NO RECORD that her husband was deceased even though she got the death benefit!!! She had to start all over with the death certificate and it delayed her benefits by THREE MONTHS!!! Don't risk it!!!!
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Dylan Campbell
•While it doesn't hurt to verify, what happened to your sister is extremely unusual. The fact that the OP already received the lump-sum death payment means SSA has processed the death and linked it to her record. The absence of survivor benefit information on the mySocialSecurity portal is completely normal - the portal simply doesn't display that information for anyone.
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Ava Martinez
When my husband passed I was told that the survivor benefits claim has to be done by phone or in-person—you can't do it online. So maybe that's why it doesn't show up in your online account? I don't think you need to do anything right now, just know that you'll need to make a phone appointment when you're ready to claim. But yeah getting through to them is IMPOSSIBLE these days... I tried for 2 weeks straight with busy signals and disconnects.
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Miguel Ramos
•You're right that survivor applications must be done by phone or in person. However, if anyone is struggling to get through on the SSA phone lines, I found a service called Claimyr that helps you skip the wait. It basically calls SSA for you and then connects you once they get through. Saved me hours of frustration when I needed to handle my mom's survivor benefit issues. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU
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QuantumQuasar
I actually just went through this whole process last year! The SSA website is totally useless for survivor benefits info. Here's what you need to know: 1. Since your husband never filed for benefits, you'll be eligible for his full PIA (primary insurance amount) at your FRA (full retirement age) 2. You can take reduced benefits as early as age 60 (or 50 if disabled) 3. If you have higher lifetime earnings than your husband, you might be better off taking your own retirement benefit when you reach 70 4. When you're ready to file, you HAVE to call or visit in person - they don't allow online applications for survivors Also, if you'll be working while receiving survivor benefits before your FRA, be aware of the earnings limit ($22,320 in 2025 before they start reducing your benefit).
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StarStrider
•This is really helpful - thank you! I do have a follow-up question: My husband worked at a state government job for about 15 years where he didn't pay into Social Security. Does that affect the survivor benefit calculation? I've heard something about a WEP or GPO reduction?
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QuantumQuasar
Government pension offset (GPO) can definitely impact your benefits. If your husband received a pension from work not covered by Social Security, the GPO might reduce your survivor benefits by 2/3 of the amount of his government pension. However, GPO applies to YOUR government pension, not his. WEP (Windfall Elimination Provision) would have affected HIS own benefits had he lived to claim them, but doesn't directly impact survivor benefits in the same way. This is definitely a situation where you should consult with an SSA rep before making claiming decisions. These provisions get very complicated.
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StarStrider
•That makes sense - thank you for clarifying! I didn't work in government, so it sounds like GPO won't apply to me. It's such a relief to know I don't need to worry about my mySocialSecurity account not showing survivor information. I'll wait until I'm closer to 60 before contacting SSA about the actual application.
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Zainab Omar
my condolences on your loss. i lost my wife 2 years ago and had the EXACT same confusion!! the ssa website is SO BAD lol. they really need to update it to show survivor info but they just dont have that feature at all. but dont worry about it! your entitled to survivor benifits regardless of what the website shows.
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Sofia Torres
•Their website is trash. My nephew works in tech and says its like 20 years out of date. Goverment cant do anything right smh
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Dylan Campbell
One more thing to keep in mind - it's generally advisable to speak with an SSA representative before you make any claiming decisions regarding survivor benefits. The optimal claiming strategy often involves taking survivor benefits at one age and your own retirement benefits at a different age, depending on your specific circumstances. For example, if your own retirement benefit at age 70 would be higher than your survivor benefit, you might take reduced survivor benefits at 60 and then switch to your own benefit at 70. Or if your survivor benefit would be higher, you might take your own reduced retirement benefit at 62 and switch to survivors at your FRA. The SSA representatives won't volunteer this information unless you specifically ask about these strategies.
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StarStrider
•That's really good advice. I've been reading about these restricted application strategies but wasn't sure if they still applied for survivor benefits. Sounds like I should definitely consult with SSA when I get closer to 60 to figure out the optimal approach.
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