I am 57 years of age my Husband passed last year (2018) after 38 years of marriage. I am wondering should I apply for his Social Security when I get 60 and still work, than when I 65 apply for my own Social Security? Also can I get his Social Security and still work. If so what is the Maximum amount I can make while receiving his Social Security. His amount is going to be less money than mine. I don't know what the best course of action. Also can you tell me How can I find out the amount of his and My Social Security Benefits.

Hi,

I'm sorry for your loss.

If you file for either widow's benefits or retirement benefits on your own record prior to your full retirement age (FRA), your benefits could be subject to full or partial withholding depending on how much you earn and your benefit rate. For example, people drawing Social Security benefits who will be below their FRA throughout 2019 lose $1 of their 2019 benefits for each $2 that they earn in excess of $17640 (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/whileworking.html).

It sounds like your best course of action would be one of the following:
1) File for reduced widow's benefits at age 60 or as soon as your earnings will permit at least some benefits to be paid, then switch to your own record at age 70; or,
2) File for reduced retirement benefits on your own record at age 62 or as soon as your earnings will permit at least some benefits to be paid, then file for unreduced widow's benefits at your full retirement age (FRA). However, if your husband received reduced Social Security retirement benefits prior to his death, then it would likely be more advantageous to claim widow's benefits at some point prior to your FRA.

Normally, you would want to start out drawing the lower benefit first and then switch to the higher record when it reaches it's highest potential rate. Our maximization software could sort all of this out for you and help you determine your optimal strategy. You can get an estimate of your retirement benefit rate using our software or by contacting Social Security or establishing a 'my Social Security' account (https://www.ssa.gov/myaccount/) on Social Security's website. However, unless you have a record of your husband's earnings history you'll need to contact Social Security in order to obtain an estimate of your future widow's benefit rate.

Best, Jerry