Will my wife get my delayed retirement Social Security survivor benefits if I die after age 70?
I'm planning my retirement and trying to maximize benefits for both me and my wife. I'm thinking of delaying my SS benefits until I turn 70 to get that 8% per year increase. My FRA is 67, and my estimated benefit at that age would be around $2,850. By waiting until 70, I should get about $3,550 monthly. My concern is what happens if I pass away after I start collecting at 70. Would my wife (who has a much lower benefit - around $1,400 at her FRA) receive survivor benefits based on my age-70 increased amount of $3,550? Or would her survivor benefit be based on what I would have received at my FRA ($2,850)? I'm trying to make sure I'm making the right decision for both of us. If she wouldn't get the delayed retirement credits I earned as part of her survivor benefits, maybe I should file earlier? Any clarity on how survivor benefits work with delayed retirement would be really helpful.
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Yara Campbell
Your wife WILL get the higher amount you were receiving at death, which includes all the delayed retirement credits you earned by waiting until 70. That's one of the main advantages of delaying benefits - it not only increases your lifetime payment but also potentially increases your spouse's survivor benefit if they outlive you. This is actually one of the best strategies for couples with significant benefit differences. The higher earner delays to 70 to maximize not only their own benefit but also the survivor benefit, while the lower earner can claim earlier if needed. Just make sure you're considering your overall health and family longevity when making this decision. The break-even point is typically around age 80-82 when comparing claiming at FRA vs. age 70.
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Ella rollingthunder87
•Thank you for explaining! That's exactly what I was hoping to hear. My family tends to be pretty long-lived (my father is 94), so I'm planning for the long haul. My wife is 3 years younger than me too, so maximizing her potential survivor benefit seems like the smart move. Appreciate the clear answer!
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Isaac Wright
Yes, what the previous person said is correct. If you pass away after starting your benefits at 70, your wife would receive your FULL benefit amount including the delayed retirement credits as her survivor benefit (assuming her own benefit is lower, which it sounds like it is). This is one of the BEST strategies for married couples when there's a significant difference in benefit amounts. The spouse with the higher benefit amount delays claiming as long as possible (ideally to age 70) to maximize the potential survivor benefit. The survivor benefit is essentially the amount you were receiving when you died, so all those increases from delaying would be passed on to her.
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Ella rollingthunder87
•This is such a relief to hear confirmed by multiple people. I was worried I might be making a big mistake by waiting, but now I see it actually helps both of us in the long run. Thanks!
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Maya Diaz
just wanted to add that my dad did exactly this - waited till 70 and passed at 76. my mom now gets his full amount with all the increases. way more than she would have gotten on her own benefit. smart planning on your part!
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Ella rollingthunder87
•Thank you for sharing your real-life example! It's reassuring to hear that the strategy worked as intended for your family.
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Tami Morgan
The previous responses are all correct, but I'd like to add a few important points: 1. If your wife is at her full retirement age when she claims the survivor benefit, she'll get 100% of your benefit (including delayed credits). 2. If she claims survivor benefits before her FRA, they will be reduced by a certain percentage depending on how early she claims. 3. She can actually switch between her own retirement benefit and the survivor benefit at different times to maximize her total lifetime payout. For example, she could claim her own reduced retirement benefit at 62, then switch to the full survivor benefit at her FRA if you've passed away by then. Or she could claim the survivor benefit first and switch to her own benefit later if hers would be higher (less common scenario). The ability to switch between the two types of benefits gives survivors important flexibility that's not available with regular retirement benefits.
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Ella rollingthunder87
•This is incredibly helpful information that I hadn't considered! So she would have options about when to claim different benefits if I pass away. I'll need to make sure she understands these choices too. Thank you for going into these additional details.
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Rami Samuels
i waited to long and regret it. claimed at 69 and wish id done it sooner. couldve enjoyed that money for years!!! something to think about no gaurentees in life
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Yara Campbell
•That's a valid perspective too. There's always a personal calculation about when to claim that depends on your health, financial situation, and how you value money now versus later. For someone who needs the money sooner or has health concerns, claiming earlier can be the right choice.
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Haley Bennett
I tried to call Social Security THREE TIMES to ask almost this exact question and kept getting disconnected after waiting on hold for over an hour each time!!! So frustrating trying to get accurate information from them directly. Their website doesn't explain these scenarios clearly either.
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Douglas Foster
•I had the same issue trying to reach SSA about my retirement application status. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a real person at Social Security in under 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - saved me hours of frustration when I needed to ask specific questions about my situation. Much better than waiting on hold all day or trying to get an in-person appointment.
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Maya Diaz
my neighbor says his wife doesnt get his full amount after he dies so now im confused
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Tami Morgan
•There could be several reasons for that situation: 1. His wife might be claiming survivor benefits before reaching her full retirement age, which reduces the amount 2. He might have claimed his own benefits early (before FRA), which permanently reduces the survivor benefit base amount 3. If his wife is working and under her FRA, the earnings test might be reducing her survivor benefits temporarily 4. If he was receiving a pension from work not covered by Social Security (like certain government jobs), the Government Pension Offset (GPO) might be reducing her survivor benefits Without knowing their specific situation, it's hard to say why she's not getting the full amount, but these are common reasons.
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Douglas Foster
One thing no one has mentioned yet - if your wife is also claiming her OWN retirement benefit when you pass away, she won't get both. She'll get the HIGHER of either her own benefit OR your benefit as a survivor. Social Security doesn't add them together. Also, definitely delay to 70 if you can afford to. I've been helping my parents with their Social Security planning, and the math strongly favors delaying the higher earner's benefit, especially if there's a spouse who might need survivor benefits later.
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Ella rollingthunder87
•Thank you for that clarification! Yes, I understand she'll get the higher of the two benefits, not both combined. Since my benefit at 70 would be significantly higher than hers, that would be the one she'd receive as a survivor. This is all helping confirm my plan to delay until 70.
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Haley Bennett
DONT FORGET about the COLA increases too!!! Each year you wait you also get whatever COLA adjustment was added. So your final amount at 70 will likely be even HIGHER than the estimate you're seeing now because of 3 years of potential COLA increases!!! This also gets passed on to your wife as part of survivor benefits!!!
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Yara Campbell
•That's an excellent point! The estimates provided by SSA generally don't include future COLA increases. So by waiting until 70, you not only get the 8% per year delayed retirement credits, but you also get 3 years of COLA adjustments applied to a larger base amount. This can significantly increase both your benefit and any eventual survivor benefit.
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Tami Morgan
Just to summarize what's been covered for clarity: 1. If you wait until 70 to claim and then pass away, your wife would receive your full benefit amount including delayed retirement credits as her survivor benefit (assuming she's at her FRA when claiming survivor benefits) 2. This is often the optimal strategy for married couples with disparate benefit amounts 3. If she claims survivor benefits before her FRA, they will be reduced 4. She has flexibility to claim her own benefit and survivor benefit at different times 5. COLA increases that accumulate while you delay will also be included in the survivor benefit Based on what you've shared, your strategy of delaying to 70 seems very sound, especially given your family longevity history and the significant difference between your and your wife's benefit amounts.
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Ella rollingthunder87
•Thank you for this clear summary! This discussion has been incredibly helpful in confirming my approach. I feel much more confident about my decision to delay benefits until 70 now that I understand how it affects survivor benefits.
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