I have read your book 'Get what yours' cover to cover and thank you for your great contribution and guidance towards our understanding of how we can have a better retirement.

One question: If the divorced surviving spouse's 60th birthday falls on Sep 17 (birthday of deceased ex spouse was Nov 1), when can the divorced surviving spouse expect to see the first check for survivor's benefit assuming applied for benefits in July, 2019.

For retirement benefits, you state that you have to be 62 (or applicable age) for a full month and then one month is arrears so if these were retirement benefits, first check would likely be in Nov, 2019

However, I seem to be recall that you get the check sooner in the case of surviving benefits. Is this true and would the surviving spouse get the first check in Sep, 2019 for September? Thanks so much for helping us set our expectations appropriately.

Regards,

Hi,

If you turn age 60 on September 17 2019 and you aren't disabled, the first month that you could potentially be paid surviving divorced spousal benefits would be for the month of September 2019. You don't have to be age 60 for the entire month to qualify for reduced survivor benefits, although you would need to be age 62 for a whole month in order to qualify for Social Security retirement benefits. Disabled surviving divorced spouses can potentially be paid as early as for the month they reach age 50.

Social Security pays benefits in the month after the month for which they're paid, so benefits for the month of September are scheduled to be paid in October. Since your deceased ex-spouse was born in the first 10 days of a month, your surviving divorced spousal benefits will likely be paid on the 2nd Wednesday of the month.

If you haven't already done so, you may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to make sure that you're choosing the best possible strategy for claiming your benefits.

Best, Jerry