Understanding Ex-Spouse Benefits
If your ex-husband passes away, you may be eligible to receive benefits based on his Social Security record, even if you are remarried. This is known as an “ex-spouse benefit.” However, there are certain conditions that must be met to qualify.
Eligibility Requirements:
- You must be unmarried.
- You must be at least 62 years old.
- Your marriage to your ex-husband must have lasted for at least 10 years.
- Your ex-husband must be deceased and either:
- Be receiving Social Security retirement or disability benefits at the time of their death.
- Have been “fully insured” under Social Security at the time of their death. This means they have earned enough work credits to qualify for benefits.
- The benefit you would receive as an ex-spouse must be higher than the benefit you are eligible for based on your own work history.
Benefit Amount:
The amount of your ex-spouse benefit will be equal to half of your ex-husband’s full retirement benefit. However, this amount may be reduced if you start receiving benefits before your full retirement age.
Impact on Your Own Benefits:
If you are eligible for both an ex-spouse benefit and a retirement benefit based on your own work history, you will receive the higher of the two benefits. However, you will not receive both benefits simultaneously.
Additional Considerations:
- If your ex-husband remarried before their death, their new spouse may also be eligible for survivor benefits.
- If you remarry after your ex-husband’s death, you will no longer be eligible for ex-spouse benefits.
- You can apply for ex-spouse benefits online, by phone, or in person at your local Social Security office.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- Can I collect my ex-husband’s Social Security if he is still alive?
No, you can only collect ex-spouse benefits if your ex-husband is deceased.
- What if my ex-husband died before I turned 62?
You can still collect ex-spouse benefits, but they will be reduced if you start receiving them before your full retirement age.
- What if I am not sure if I am eligible for ex-spouse benefits?
You can contact the Social Security Administration for more information or to apply for benefits.
Additional Resources:
- Social Security Administration: Ex-Spouse Benefits (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/survivors/ifyou.html)
- Social Security Administration: Ex-Spouse Benefits and You (https://blog.ssa.gov/ex-spouse-benefits-and-you/)
If your ex-husband has passed away, you may be eligible to receive benefits based on their Social Security record. However, there are certain conditions that must be met to qualify.
How to Apply for Ex-Spouse Benefits
If you believe you may be eligible for ex-spouse benefits, you can apply online, by phone, or in person at your local Social Security office. You will need to provide the following information:
- Your Social Security number
- Your ex-husband’s Social Security number
- Your ex-husband’s date of birth
- Your ex-husband’s date of death
- Your marriage certificate
- Your divorce decree
Contact the Social Security Administration
If you have any questions about ex-spouse benefits, you can contact the Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 or visit their website at www.ssa.gov.
Do we pay death benefits?
If the surviving spouse lived with the deceased, a one-time lump-sum death payment of $255 may be made to them. They might be qualified for the lump-sum death benefit if they were living apart and the deceased’s record showed that they were receiving specific Social Security benefits.
Payment is made to a child who is eligible for benefits on the deceased’s record in the month of death if there is no surviving spouse.
A few other situations:
- After we receive the death report, if you are currently receiving benefits as a spouse, your benefit will automatically convert to survivors benefits.
- You have another choice if you are also qualified for retirement benefits but haven’t applied yet. You can apply now for survivors benefits or retirement benefits and change to the other, higher benefit at a later time.
- You may only apply for benefits as a surviving spouse if you are already receiving retirement benefits and those benefits are less than what you would receive as a survivor.
If you became entitled to retirement benefits less than 12 months ago, you may be able to withdraw your retirement application and apply for survivors benefits only. If you do that, you can reapply for the retirement benefits later when they will be higher.
As long as your marriage lasted ten years or longer, you may be eligible for benefits similar to those of a surviving spouse if you are the divorced spouse of a worker who passes away.
Benefits paid to you as the divorced spouse who survived won’t have an impact on the workers’ record on benefits received by other survivors.
You will not lose your eligibility for survivors benefits if you remarry after turning 60 (or 50 if you have a disability).
You would not need to meet the length-of-marriage requirement if you are providing care for a child under the age of sixteen or who has a disability and the child receives benefits on the record of your former spouse. The child has to be the biological or lawfully adopted child of your ex-spouse. If you qualify because you are caring for the worker’s child,