When a spouse dies, their Social Security retirement or disability payments stop, and the payment for the month of death has to be returned even if it arrives after the funeral. In its place, a surviving husband or wife can usually claim survivor benefits worth between 71.5% and 100% of what the deceased was receiving, plus a one-time $255 death payment.1Social Security Administration. What You Could Get From Survivor Benefits The rules on who qualifies, how much you get, and when to file are worth understanding, because the timing of your claim can change your monthly amount for the rest of your life.
The Final Payment Must Be Returned
Social Security does not pay benefits for the month a person dies. If your spouse passed away in July, the August payment (which covers July) has to go back to the agency.2USA.gov. Report the Death of a Social Security or Medicare Beneficiary For direct deposits, contact the bank and ask them to return the funds. Spending the money creates an overpayment the agency will recover later.
You usually don’t have to report the death yourself. Funeral homes almost always notify Social Security as part of their standard paperwork.3Social Security Administration. What to Do When Someone Dies If no funeral home is involved, call 1-800-772-1213 with the deceased’s name, Social Security number, date of birth, and date of death.4Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security by Phone
Who Qualifies for Survivor Benefits
Two sides have to line up. Your spouse must have earned enough work credits: a minimum of six, and up to 40 credits (roughly ten years of work) for fully insured status.5Social Security Administration. Insured Status Requirements Workers who die young may still qualify their families with as few as six credits earned in the three years before death.
On your side, one of the following has to be true:
- You are 60 or older (reduced benefits), or you have reached your full retirement age for survivors, which falls between 66 and 67 depending on your birth year (full benefits).6Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.335
- You are between 50 and 59 with a qualifying disability.6Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.335
- You are caring for the deceased worker’s child who is under 16 or disabled. Age requirements do not apply in this case.7Social Security Administration. Who Can Get Survivor Benefits
- You are divorced from the deceased, and the marriage lasted at least ten years.8Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits
The marriage generally must have lasted at least nine months before the date of death, with exceptions for accidental death and deaths during active military service.6Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.335 Common-law marriages are accepted in states that recognize them, but you’ll need statements on SSA forms from yourself and two blood relatives of the deceased, along with supporting documents like joint bank records or mortgage papers.9Social Security Administration. Evidence of Common-Law Marriage
How Much You’ll Receive
The amount depends heavily on when you start collecting. At age 60, you get 71.5% of what your spouse was receiving (or would have received). That percentage climbs each year you wait, reaching 100% at your full retirement age for survivors.1Social Security Administration. What You Could Get From Survivor Benefits On a $2,000 monthly benefit, the gap between claiming at 60 and waiting until full retirement age is roughly $570 a month, permanently.
Children of the deceased can collect too. Each eligible child receives up to 75% of the worker’s benefit. Children qualify if they’re unmarried and either under 18, or under 19 and still in high school full-time. Disabled children can receive benefits at any age if the disability began before age 22.
The Family Maximum
When several relatives collect on the same record, total payments are capped. In practice, the family maximum usually falls between 150% and 180% of the deceased worker’s benefit.10Social Security Administration. Formula for Family Maximum Benefit If the total owed to all family members exceeds the cap, each person’s payment is reduced proportionally. The surviving spouse’s amount stays intact when only a spouse and children are collecting.
Switching Between Your Own Benefit and the Survivor Benefit
If you qualify for both your own retirement benefit and a survivor benefit, you don’t have to pick one for life. You can start one and switch to the other later, which is where a lot of money is left on the table.8Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits
Two strategies come up most often. If your own retirement benefit will eventually be larger, you can take the survivor benefit starting at 60 and let your retirement benefit grow by about 8% a year until age 70, then switch. If the survivor benefit will be larger, you can take a reduced retirement benefit at 62 and switch to the full survivor benefit at your full retirement age. Survivor benefits do not grow past full retirement age, so there is no reason to delay them further.
Already collecting on your own record when your spouse dies? Contact Social Security. If the survivor benefit would pay more, they’ll pay you a combination that equals the higher amount.
The $255 Lump-Sum Death Payment
Social Security also pays a one-time death payment of $255. The amount hasn’t changed in decades. To qualify, you must have been living with your spouse at the time of death, or you must have already been receiving benefits on their record.11eCFR. 20 CFR 404.390 If no spouse qualifies, a dependent child may be eligible.
The filing deadline is two years from the date of death.12eCFR. 20 CFR 404.392 If you were already collecting spousal benefits on the worker’s record, no separate application is needed.
What Changes If You Work
If you collect survivor benefits before your full retirement age and you’re still working, the earnings test applies. In 2026, you can earn up to $24,480 with no reduction.13Social Security Administration. Receiving Benefits While Working Above that, Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 you earn.14Social Security Administration. Exempt Amounts Under the Earnings Test Withheld money isn’t gone: once you hit full retirement age, your monthly payment is recalculated upward to account for it.
Only wages and self-employment income count. Investment income, pensions, and other government benefits don’t. In the year you reach full retirement age, a higher limit kicks in and the withholding rate drops to $1 for every $3. After full retirement age, there is no earnings test at all.
What Changes If You Remarry
Remarriage before age 60 (or 50 if you have a qualifying disability) ends survivor benefit eligibility. Remarry at 60 or later and your survivor benefits continue as if nothing happened. Some finer points:
- Remarry before 50 and you lose eligibility, unless the later marriage ends in divorce or annulment.15Social Security Administration. Will Remarrying Affect My Social Security Benefits
- Remarry between 50 and 59 and you may still receive disabled surviving spouse benefits if you were disabled at the time and the marriage happened after 50.15Social Security Administration. Will Remarrying Affect My Social Security Benefits
- Remarry at 60 or later and there is no effect. If your new spouse also receives Social Security, you can collect whichever benefit is higher.
The Government Pension Offset No Longer Applies
For years the Government Pension Offset reduced or eliminated survivor benefits for people who earned a pension from a government job not covered by Social Security, mainly some teachers, firefighters, and state employees. The Social Security Fairness Act, signed on January 5, 2025, eliminated the GPO entirely, and December 2023 was the last month the offset applied.16Social Security Administration. Social Security Fairness Act: Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset Update
If you skipped applying in the past because the GPO would have wiped out your survivor payment, file now. Benefits don’t start automatically. Standard rules still apply, including the reduction for claiming before full retirement age.
How to Apply and What to Bring
Survivor benefits cannot be filed for online. You’ll need to call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, Monday through Friday) or visit a local field office in person.4Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security by Phone The call sets up an interview, which can happen by phone or in the office. The application form is SSA-10.17Social Security Administration. Form SSA-10
Have these ready:
- A certified copy of the death certificate (the funeral home can usually order this)
- Social Security numbers for you and the deceased
- Your marriage certificate
- Birth certificates for any children applying on the same record
- Bank routing and account numbers for direct deposit
- A recent W-2 or self-employment tax return for the deceased
Retroactive Payments
If you delay applying, you may collect up to six months of retroactive benefits before your application date.18Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.621 There’s a catch: if taking retroactive payments would mean effectively claiming at a younger age and locking in a permanent reduction, the SSA won’t pay them unless doing so still results in a higher lifetime benefit. Disabled surviving spouses under 61 may be eligible for up to 12 months of retroactive payments. Filing sooner protects you from losing months you can’t get back.