I was married to my first husband 18 years. I remarried and my second husband passed away. My ex-husband remarried and that marriage lasted 20 years. If my ex-husband were to pass away, which ex-wife could claim his social security benefits?

Hi,

Potentially, both of them. As long as a person meets all of the requirements for entitlement (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.04/handbook-0403.html), they can claim survivor benefits on the record of a deceased spouse or ex-spouse regardless of whether or not any other surviving spouses or ex-spouses also qualify for benefits.

It sounds like you may have a number of potential options with regard to Social Security, so you may want to consider using the maximization software available on this website to explore your benefit options and determine your best filing strategy.

Best, Jerry