My 74-year-old husband passed away in December 2018. He had waited until age 70 to receive his Social Security benefits. A few months after his death, I turned 62 (last May). When I went to Social Security in Boston (where I successfully filed for survivor benefits for my son) I was encouraged to file for my husband's reduced benefits as a widow. When I asked whether I could take my substantially lower benefits at age 62 and switch to his higher benefits at my FRA, several people at Social Security told me several times that it was not possible to start with mine and switch to his. I didn't think it was true, so I didn't apply for his benefits or mine. If I file for my personal reduced benefits now at age 62, can I switch to my late husband's full higher benefits at my FRA? If so, how will that affect the amount I receive now, and later when I receive his benefits? Thanks for doing this, by the way.

Hi,

I'm sorry for your loss.

Yes, you can, and if a Social Security representative told you otherwise then you were misinformed. You don't mention whether or not you are working, though, and if you are then there would be a limit on how much you could earn prior to full retirement age (FRA) and still be able to collect your benefits (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/whileworking.html).

Based on your description of your potential retirement and survivor benefit rates, it sounds like you'd want to apply for your own benefits either as soon as possible or as soon as your earnings would permit the payment of at least some benefits. You could then apply for widow's benefits when you reach FRA, which would raise your total benefit rate to your husband's full rate inclusive of the delayed retirement credits (DRC) he earned by waiting until age 70 to start drawing his benefits. The fact that your own benefit rate would be reduced in return for starting your benefits early would not reduce the total monthly amount you'd receive once you file for your higher widow's rate.

You may want to consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to confirm your best possible filing strategy.

Best, Jerry