The Benefits Blog

If a client starts the SS widow benefit before her FRA and continues to work, is the benefit reduced for earnings over the limit?

Yes, if a client begins receiving Social Security widow benefits before reaching her Full Retirement Age (FRA) and continues to work, her benefits are indeed subject to ...

Can you clarify for me. 65 female is drawing survivor benefit from her deceased husband. She remarried after age 60 to a man that has non covered pension and when he retired he included survivor benefit for her on his pension. Will GPO apply to her current survivor benefit from deceased husband or h...

If a widow has her FRA for retirement benefits and FRA for survivor benefits in the same calendar year, then she must use the latter of the two (FRA for retirement benefits) for purposes of the earnings test. 

When a widow reaches her Full Retirement Age (FRA) for both retirement benefits and survi...

A woman referred to me whose husband passed in November at age 46. She is also age 46. She is scheduled to collect SS for her two kids ages 11,13. She isn’t currently working. She will go back in 2023.  Will her earnings affect the SS her children receive?

In this situation, the woman's earnings wi...

Situation arose this afternoon, I am looking for some guidance. Husband died in 2021 at age of 64 and had already begun his Social Security benefit. 26 year old child is on SSI and is disabled. It sounds like she (mom, widow) is currently receiving child-in-care benefit.  She is about to turn age 60...

Had a client inquire on behalf of a neighbor who recently lost her husband to COVID. The surviving spouse was told by SS that she in entitled to receive her SS benefit AND his because he died from COVID and they have been paying her both benefits since April.  My bet is that someone at SS made a mis...

If the person takes the FERS supplement at age 60, does that technically count as starting the pension and GPO will apply to the widow benefit? Or can the person collect the widow benefit at 60 with no GPO reduction and collect the supplement?

If an individual under the Federal Employees Retirement...