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What Will My Widow's Benefit Be If I File At Age 60?

my spouse died before reaching 62 at 62 would have received 1095 monthly benefit. i have not reached 60, what will be my monthly amount at 60 for spousal benefit?

Hi. I'm sorry for your loss. If a widow claims benefits at age 60, their benefit rate is calculated at 71.5% of their deceased spouse's primary insurance amount (PIA). A person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit rate if they start drawing their benefits at full retirement age (FRA).

There isn't enough information in your question for me to be able to give you any specific advice, but your best filing strategy may 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).

Normally, you would want to start out drawing the lower benefit first and then switch to the higher benefit when it reaches its highest potential rate. Our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) could help sort all of this out for you so that you can determine the best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry

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Posted: 
Feb 20 2022 - 6:20am
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