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How does Social Security work when your spouse dies?

How does Social Security work when your spouse dies?

| December 12, 2018

Social Security spousal benefits present an important source of income for many of your clients. But there are several important and unique Social Security issues that must be addressed for any client that has recently lost their spouse.

To help make it easier, we have created the “Am I Eligible for Social Security Benefits as a Surviving Spouse?” flowchart. It addresses many common Social Security issues that arise for clients who have recently lost their spouse:

  • Eligibility considerations
  • Length of marriage rules
  • Age that benefits can be collected by the surviving spouse
  • Married vs divorced vs surviving spouse implications
  • Impact of a remarriage
  • Impact of having children
  • Impact of a disability

Updated 5/1/19

This article represents opinions of the authors and not those of their firm and are subject to change from time to time, and do not constitute a recommendation to purchase and sale any security nor to engage in any particular investment or legal strategy. The information contained here has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable but cannot be guaranteed for accuracy.