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Spouses generally are expected to have been married for nine months to qualify for survivor benefits, but exceptions to the nine-month rule can be made if the widow or widower is the parent of the deceased worker’s child. (Exceptions to the nine-month marriage rule are also made if a breadwinner dies in an accident or in the line of duty as a member of a uniformed service.)

Surviving spouses who wait until full retirement age to collect survivor benefits could get up to 100 percent of the benefit amount received by the deceased partner. Survivor benefits can be collected as early as age 60, but the benefit is reduced for each month it’s taken before full retirement age — a difference that, over time, can add up to many thousands of dollars.

For widow’s and widower’s benefits, the reduction rate ranges from of 1 percent per month (for a person whose full retirement age is 65) to of 1 percent per month (for a person whose full retirement age is 67). The reduction is computed for the time period starting when benefits are received until the widow or widower reaches his or her full retirement age.

Widowed applicants are asked to sign Form SSA-4111, which discloses that benefits taken before their full retirement age are reduced. You can go to www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-4111.pdf to print the form.

Note: The full retirement age for survivor benefits (for widows and widowers) may be slightly different than the full retirement age for workers and spouses, depending on your date of birth. The full retirement age for survivors is gradually rising to 67 for people born in 1962 or later. The full retirement age for workers and spouses is gradually rising to 67 for people born in 1960 or later.

Benefit amounts for widows and widowers are also affected by whether the deceased partner had begun collecting Social Security benefits:

 If the deceased hadn’t yet begun collecting retirement benefits, the surviving spouse could get 100 percent of the deceased spouse’s full retirement benefit (the PIA; see the earlier sidebar “Social Security’s benchmark for benefits: The primary insurance amount” for more information), as computed by Social Security.

 If the deceased had already begun collecting retirement benefits, the survivor payment is the lower of the following:The benefit based on 100 percent of the deceased individual’s PIA reduced by any months before the survivor’s full retirement ageThe larger of (a) the amount that was going to the deceased or (b) 82.5 percent of the deceased worker’s PIA

The death of a higher-earning spouse may mean higher benefits for the survivor, even if the survivor is already collecting retirement benefits. When a spouse dies, the survivor should remind the SSA that he or she is getting benefits based on his or her own record. The SSA then checks to see whether the amount should be increased because of survivor protections. If that’s the case, the SSA provides a combined benefit — the survivor’s own retirement benefit plus an extra amount, so the total equals the full survivor benefit under the deceased spouse’s record.

What happens if you’re a survivor with an earnings record of your own? It depends on whether you’ve already started collecting retirement benefits:

 If you haven’t yet started collecting your own Social Security retirement benefits on your own work record: As a surviving spouse, you may choose to collect a survivor’s benefit, while allowing your own unclaimed retirement benefits to increase in value. Later, if your unclaimed retirement benefit has exceeded the amount of your survivor’s benefit, you may switch to your own retirement benefit. (The SSA doesn’t allow you to claim both and simply add them up.) These rules are potentially complex, so it’s a good idea to consult with a Social Security representative if you qualify for survivor and retirement benefits.

 If you’re already collecting Social Security retirement benefits on your own work record: If the survivor benefit you now qualify for is higher than the retirement benefit you’re already collecting, the SSA adds a benefit to your retirement amount, creating a combined benefit equal to the higher survivor’s benefit. If the amount you would get as a survivor is lower than what you’re receiving already as a retiree, the SSA leaves your retirement benefit alone.

Here’s an example of this situation in action: Beverly, a public relations executive, always earned more than Marvin, her husband, who retired from his job as a high school English teacher. When Marvin died at 66, his full retirement age, he had already started collecting a Social Security retirement benefit of $1,400 per month. Beverly, 62, was eligible for a reduced widow’s benefit of $1,134 (81 percent of $1,400, because of the reduction for Beverly’s age). Beverly collects the widow’s benefit for several years. Meanwhile, she allows her own, unclaimed retirement benefit to increase, even after she stops working. Her full retirement benefit is $2,300. That means with the reductions for early retirement, she could get $1,725 per month at 62, but she waits eight more years to stop her survivor benefit and claim a delayed retirement benefit of $2,300 × 1.32 = $3,036 at age 70. If Beverly had already started her retirement benefit at the time Marvin died, she still would have received only her retirement benefit, because her own benefit (no matter when she took it) would be larger than her potential survivor’s benefit based on Marvin’s more modest earnings. That isn’t always the case, but it is for Beverly, because her earnings were so much higher than her husband’s.