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Social Security Online		 Full Retirement Age for Survivors
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If you were born in 1940, your full retirement age for survivors benefits is 65 and 2 months
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Remember, the earliest a widow or widower can start receiving Social Security survivors benefits based on age will remain age 60.

If you start receiving survivors benefits at age

  • 60, you will get 71.5% of the monthly benefit because you will be getting benefits for an additional 62 months.
  • 62, you will get 82.5% of the monthly benefit because you will be getting benefits for an additional 38 months.

Note: If you're receiving widows, widowers, or divorced widows or widowers benefits, you can switch to your own retirement benefit as early as age 62.

Reminder: Your full retirement age for retirement benefits may not match your full retirement age for survivors benefits.

Full retirement age goes from 65 to.... 66.... 67
 

How Your Social Security Survivors Benefit is Reduced

If you start getting benefits at age*

The survivors benefit you will receive is reduced to
60   71.5%
60 + 1 month 72.0
60 + 2 months 72.4
60 + 3 months 72.9
60 + 4 months 73.3
60 + 5 months 73.8
60 + 6 months 74.3
60 + 7 months 74.7
60 + 8 months 75.2
60 + 9 months 75.6
60 + 10 months 76.1
60 + 11 months 76.6
61 77.0
61 + 1 month 77.5
61 + 2 months 77.9
61 + 3 months 78.4
61 + 4 months 78.9
61 + 5 months 79.3
61 + 6 months 79.8
61 + 7 months 80.2
61 + 8 months 80.7
61 + 9 months 81.2
61 + 10 months 81.6
61 + 11 months 82.1
62 82.5
62 + 1 month 83.0
62 + 2 months 83.5
62 + 3 months 83.9
62 + 4 months 84.4
62 + 5 months 84.8
62 + 6 months 85.3
62 + 7 months 85.8
62 + 8 months 86.2
62 + 9 months 86.7
62 + 10 months 87.1
62 + 11 months 87.6
63 88.0
63 + 1 month 88.5
63 + 2 months 89.0
63 + 3 months 89.4
63 + 4 months 89.9
63 + 5 months 90.3
63 + 6 months 90.8
63 + 7 months 91.3
63 + 8 months 91.7
63 + 9 months 92.2
63 + 10 months 92.6
63 + 11 months 93.1
64 93.6
64 + 1 month 94.0
64 + 2 months 94.5
64 + 3 months 94.9
64 + 4 months 95.4
64 + 5 months 95.9
64 + 6 months 96.3
64 + 7 months 96.8
64 + 8 months 97.2
64 + 9 months 97.7
64 + 10 months 98.2
64 + 11 months 98.6
65 99.1
65 + 1 month 99.5
65 + 2 months 100.0
*If your birthday is on the 1st of the month, we figure your benefit as if your birthday were in the previous month.

Click here for a chart of survivors retirement benefits and reductions based on different years of birth.

  
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Last reviewed or modified Monday Jan 14, 2008
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