I am a widow aged 59, collecting childcare benefits because my stepson who gets disability lives with me. I am currently receiving $1,448.00 a month. I was told by the lady at social security that when I switch to the widow’s benefits in the event that my stepson does not receive his any longer or moves out, the amount that I receive will be the same, $1448.00 no matter when I get the benefit at age 60 or beyond. Does this sound right? I only took the childcare benefit because I was out of a job. Also, does my deceased husband’s benefit amount reach it’s limit at my retirement age? Because it looks like I will get more on mine if I wait till 70 and continue to earn some money over the next 11 years.

Hi,

No, that's not correct. The original benefit rate for a surviving mother's benefit, which is apparently what you now receive, is calculated at 75% of the deceased worker's primary insurance amount (PIA). And, unless more than one child is eligible for benefits on your husband's record, that is almost certainly the rate that you are receiving.

Unreduced widow's benefits, on the other hand, are calculated at 100% of the deceased worker's PIA. But, if you switched to widow's benefits at age 60 you would only get 71.5% of the your husband's PIA, meaning that your net monthly benefit rate would be lower than what you currently are receiving. In order to get an unreduced widow's benefit you would have to wait until your full retirement age (FRA) to switch to widow's benefits, but you could only get a full 100% of your husband's PIA if he did not receive reduced retirement benefits prior to his death.

If your own retirement benefit amount if you wait until age 70 to file for your retirement benefits would be higher than your unreduced widow's rate OR if your husband did receive reduced retirement benefits prior to his death, then it would likely be advantageous for you to switch to widow's benefits at some point prior to FRA. Our maximization software should be able to sort this all out for you and help you determine your optimal strategy for claiming your widow's and retirement benefits.

Best, Jerry