Will earning $70K affect my Social Security widow benefits at age 60?
I'm turning 60 next month and planning to apply for survivor benefits after losing my husband last year. Based on his Social Security records, I'm expecting around $1,700 monthly (which I calculated is about 71.5% of what he was receiving). Here's my concern - I've been interviewing for jobs and might get an offer with a $75,000 salary. I'm worried about how this would affect my widow benefits. Would I lose them completely? Get a reduced amount? I know there's some earnings test but don't understand how it applies to survivor benefits specifically. I'm trying to make smart financial decisions after being out of work for 8 months caring for my husband before he passed. Any insights would be greatly appreciated!
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Diego Ramirez
Yes, your widow benefits will be affected by the earnings test if you're working before your Full Retirement Age (FRA). For 2025, if you're under FRA for the entire year, SSA will deduct $1 for every $2 you earn above $22,320. With a $75K salary, you'd be significantly over that limit. So you'd calculate: $75,000 - $22,320 = $52,680 over the limit Then: $52,680 ÷ 2 = $26,340 in benefits withheld for the year Since your monthly benefit would be about $1,700, that means approximately 15-16 months of benefits could be withheld. You might not receive any payments for a period, depending on when you start working.
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ShadowHunter
•Oh no! I didn't realize it would be that much. So basically taking this job means I probably won't get any widow benefits at all until I reach my FRA? That's 7 years away for me (67). Are the benefits just gone forever or do I get them back somehow later?
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Anastasia Sokolov
My mom went thru this EXACT situation!!! When my dad died she was 60 and got widows benefits. Then she started working again making like 65k and they stopped her payments completely. She was FURIOUS bc nobody explained this to her when she applied!!!! The SS people should tell everyone about this b4 they apply!
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Sean O'Connor
•The SSA is terrible about explaining the earnings test. But just to clarify - the benefits aren't permanently lost. When you reach Full Retirement Age, SSA recalculates your benefit amount to give credit for months benefits were withheld. So you do eventually get that money back in the form of a higher monthly payment after FRA.
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Zara Ahmed
You might want to run some real numbers before deciding. If you're making $75k, that's about $6,250/month before taxes. Compare that to $1,700 in survivor benefits. Financially, taking the job makes more sense even if you lose all your benefits temporarily. Also worth considering: you can earn Social Security credits through this job that might increase your own retirement benefit later. And if you wait until your FRA to claim widow benefits, you'll get 100% of your husband's benefit instead of the reduced 71.5%. Lots of factors to weigh beyond just the earnings test!
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ShadowHunter
•That's a really good point about building my own credits. I worked part-time for several years while raising our kids, so my own benefit would be pretty small. I guess I'm just trying to maximize everything since I'm on my own now. Thank you for this perspective!
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Luca Conti
i heard somewhere that the first year u claim theres a different rule? like a monthly test instead of yearly? anybody know if thats true?
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Diego Ramirez
•Yes, that's correct! In your first year claiming benefits, SSA applies a monthly earnings test rather than annual. You can receive benefits for any month you earn below the monthly limit (which would be $1,860 in 2025 - that's the $22,320 annual limit divided by 12). This could be helpful if you start the job partway through the year or if your work is seasonal. You could potentially receive benefits for the months before you start working, even if your annual income ends up being well over the limit.
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Nia Johnson
Have you tried actually calling the SSA to ask? I spent 3 HOURS on hold last week trying to get someone to explain my benefits situation and kept getting disconnected. Finally gave up. Their website is useless for complicated situations like this.
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CyberNinja
•I had the same issue trying to reach SSA about my widow benefits! After multiple disconnected calls, I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through. They have a service that holds your place in line and calls you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of frustration. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Totally worth it to get a real person who could look at my specific situation with the earnings test.
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Sean O'Connor
One thing to keep in mind is that the earnings rule changes in the year you reach Full Retirement Age. In the year you reach FRA, the earnings limit increases significantly (around $59,520 for 2025) AND they only deduct $1 for every $3 you earn over the limit (instead of $1 for every $2). Plus, they only count earnings BEFORE the month you reach FRA. So when you get closer to your FRA, the penalty becomes much less severe. And once you hit FRA, there's no earnings limit at all - you can earn any amount without affecting your benefits.
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Zara Ahmed
•Great point about the FRA year having different rules. Also worth mentioning that only wages and self-employment income count toward the earnings test. Investment income, pension payments, annuities, and capital gains don't count against you.
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ShadowHunter
Thank you all for this helpful information! It sounds like I should probably take the job if offered, even though it means temporarily losing my widow benefits. The long-term financial benefits seem to outweigh the short-term loss of survivor benefits. One last question - if I take the job and have my benefits withheld, do I need to officially withdraw my application for survivor benefits? Or does SSA automatically adjust things based on my reported earnings?
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Diego Ramirez
•You don't need to withdraw your application. Once approved, you'll remain entitled to survivor benefits even if they're temporarily withheld. SSA will adjust based on your reported earnings (which your employer reports). I recommend setting up a my Social Security account online if you haven't already. You can report expected earnings changes there, which helps avoid overpayments that you'd have to pay back later. Much better to have benefits properly withheld upfront than to receive benefits you're not entitled to and face recovery later.
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