By Brenda Brown
Social Security Public Affairs Specialist in Fayetteville, NC
Most people know at least something about Social Security. For decades, Social Security has
been providing valuable information and tools to help you build financial security. Here’s your
opportunity to find out a little more, with some lesser-known facts about Social Security.
1. Social Security pays benefits to children.
Social Security pays benefits to unmarried children whose parents are deceased, disabled, or
retired. See Benefits for Children at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/EN-05- 10085.pdf for the
specific requirements.
2. Social Security can pay benefits to parents.
Most people know that when a worker dies, we can pay benefits to surviving spouses and
children. What you may not know is that under certain circumstances, we can pay benefits to a
surviving parent. Read our Fact Sheet Parent’s Benefits, available at
www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/EN-05- 10036.pdf, for the details.
3. Widows’ and widowers’ payments can continue if remarriage occurs after age 60.
Remarriage ends survivor’s benefits when it occurs before age 60, but benefits can continue for
marriages after age 60.
4. If a spouse draws reduced retirement benefits before starting spouse’s benefits (his or
her spouse is younger), the spouse will not receive 50 percent of the worker’s benefit
amount.
Your full spouse’s benefit could be up to 50 percent of your spouse’s full retirement age amount
if you are full retirement age when you take it. If you qualify for your own retirement benefit and
a spouse’s benefit, we always pay your own benefit first. (For example, you are eligible for $400
from your own retirement and $150 as a spouse for a total of $550.) The reduction rates for
retirement and spouses benefits are different. If your spouse is younger, you cannot receive
benefits unless he or she is receiving benefits (except for divorced spouses). If you took your
reduced retirement first while waiting for your spouse to reach retirement age, when you add
spouse’s benefits later, your own retirement portion remains reduced which causes the total
retirement and spouses benefit together to total less than 50 percent of the worker’s amount. You
can find out more at www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/quickcalc/spouse.html.
5. If your spouse’s retirement benefit is higher than your retirement benefit, and he or she
chooses to take reduced benefits and dies first, your survivor benefit will be reduced, but
may be higher than what your spouse received.
If the deceased worker started receiving reduced retirement benefits before their full retirement
age, a special rule called the retirement insurance benefit limit may apply to the surviving
spouse. The retirement insurance benefit limit is the maximum survivor benefit you may
receive. Generally, the limit is the higher of:
– The reduced monthly retirement benefit to which the deceased spouse would have
been entitled if they had lived, or
– 82.5 percent of the unreduced deceased spouse’s monthly benefit if they had started
receiving benefits at their full retirement age (rather than choosing to receive a
reduced retirement benefit early).
Social Security helps secure your financial future by providing the facts you need to make life’s
important decisions.
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