Social Security Surviving Divorced Spouse Benefits (2024)

FAQs

Social Security Surviving Divorced Spouse Benefits? ›

If you have a surviving divorced spouse, they could get the same benefits as your surviving spouse if that marriage lasted 10 years or more. If your surviving divorced spouse qualifies for retirement benefits on their own record, they can switch to their own retirement benefit as early as age 62.

Divorced people can receive survivor benefits of 71.5 percent to 100 percent of the late former spouse's benefit amount, depending on your age when you claim. In most cases, you still must have been married for 10 years. Your survivor benefits do not affect those paid to an ex's widow or widower, and vice versa.

Benefits For Your Divorced Spouse

If you are divorced, your ex-spouse can receive benefits based on your record (even if you have remarried) if: Your marriage lasted 10 years or longer. Your ex-spouse is unmarried. Your ex-spouse is age 62 or older.

Be at least age 60. Be divorced from the deceased worker. Have been married to the deceased worker for at least 10 years. Not be entitled to an equal or higher Social Security benefit on your own work record.

To qualify for benefits as a disabled surviving spouse, you must be divorced from a deceased spouse and meet the following requirements: Be at least age 50 but not yet age 60. Have been married at least 10 years before the date the divorce became final. Meet the disability related requirements.

This is good news when former spouses are not on good terms. Your ex cannot “block” you from drawing your spousal benefit.

In other words, we'll pay the higher of the two benefits for which you're eligible, but not both. You can apply for benefits on your former spouse's record even if he or she hasn't retired, as long as you divorced at least two years before applying.

A Social Security spousal rule that has been around for decades officially ends this year for everyone except those who turned 70 on Jan. 1, 2024. The rule allows recipients to switch between their benefits and their spouse's to receive the maximum amount.

Yes, you can. Notify the Social Security Administration that you were married more than once and may qualify for benefits on more than one spouse's earnings record.

There is no hard and fast rule on this. Generally, a claim can be brought at any time until a consent order is put in place. However, waiting too long after your divorce could make obtaining a share of your former spouse's retirement benefits more difficult, or even impossible.

What disqualifies you from survivor benefits? ›

If you remarry before age 60 (age 50 if you have a disability), you cannot receive benefits as a surviving spouse while you are married. If you remarry after age 60 (age 50 if you have a disability), you will continue to be eligible for benefits on your deceased spouse's Social Security record.

you're eligible for some of your ex's Social Security

wives and widows. That means most divorced women collect their own Social Security while the ex is alive, but can apply for higher widow's rates when he dies.

If Your Ex-Spouse Dies Without a Will

Generally, the law divides property between a legal spouse, parents, and blood-related or adopted children. While you could inherit from a will if you were legally married but estranged, such is not the case for an ex who dies without a will.

Form SSA-2 | Information You Need to Apply for Spouse's or Divorced Spouse's Benefits. You can apply: Online, if you are within 3 months of age 62 or older, or. By calling our national toll-free service at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) or visiting your local Social Security office.

Have you heard about the Social Security $16,728 yearly bonus? There's really no “bonus” that retirees can collect. The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses a specific formula based on your lifetime earnings to determine your benefit amount.

If Your Ex-Spouse Dies Without a Will

Generally, the law divides property between a legal spouse, parents, and blood-related or adopted children. While you could inherit from a will if you were legally married but estranged, such is not the case for an ex who dies without a will.

For a spouse who is not entitled to benefits on his or her own earnings record, this reduction factor is applied to the base spousal benefit, which is 50 percent of the worker's primary insurance amount.

According to the Social Security Administration, the average survivor benefit paid in December 2023 was $1,501.60 per month.

The percentage of your spouse's full retirement benefit that you receive could be as little as 32.5% at age 62. It steps up gradually to 50% as you near your full retirement age, which is 65, 66 or 67, depending on your birth year.2 And don't bother delaying your spousal benefits past your full retirement age.