Ask Larry

Will My Social Security Benefits Be Affected If I Receive A Survivor Pension From The Post Office?

I'm 69 years old and started drawing my own full social security at 67 .I worked for 30 + years . My wife is going to retire from the post office and put me down for a survivor annuity . Up on her death will my own social security, or the survivor benefit from her post office retirement be affected by the windfall act, or wep act?

Hi,

No. In order for either WEP (Windfall Elimination Provision) or GPO (Government Pension Offset) to apply, the pension involved must be based on your OWN earnings that were exempt from Social Security taxes. Any pension(s) that you receive based on your wife's work and earnings would have no effect on any type of Social Security benefits that you might receive.

Best, Jerry

Posted: 
Jan 19 2020 - 11:28am
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