When a beloved family member passes away Social Security is not the focus, as grieving family members have their minds on other things, but eventually when it is time to get the deceased family member’s affairs in order Social Security is one matter that needs to be addressed. Even if the deceased family member was not receiving benefits the Social Security Administration needs to be notified of a passing. If the deceased was collecting Social Security benefits it is even more important to inform Social Security.
Informing Social Security of a family member’s passing will allow the agency to stop benefits being paid to the deceased individual, but will also potentially allow family members to be eligible for survivor’s benefits through the Social Security Administration. There are a number of different programs that allow family members to collect Social Security benefits when a beneficiary dies. This includes survivor’s benefits for minor children and even benefits for the deceased widow or widower. Keep in mind that when a family member passes away it will cause a lot of stress, fear and anxiety, so understanding how survivor’s benefits work ahead of time would be beneficial. Below is a fact sheet from Social Security about all the different survivor’s programs available to deceased family members.
- We can pay a one-time payment of $255 to the surviving spouse if they were living with the deceased. If living apart from the deceased and eligible for certain Social Security benefits on the deceased’s record, the surviving spouse may still be able to get this one-time payment. If there’s no surviving spouse, a child who’s eligible for benefits on the deceased’s record in the month of death can get this payment.
- Certain family members may be eligible to receive monthly benefits, including:
—A widow or widower age 60 or older (age 50 or older if disabled).
—A widow or widower of any age caring for the deceased’s child who is under age 16 or disabled.
—An unmarried child of the deceased who is either:
◦ Younger than age 18 (or up to age 19 if they’re a full-time student in an elementary or secondary school).
◦ Age 18 or older with a disability that began before age 22.
—A stepchild, grandchild, step grandchild, or adopted child under certain circumstances.
—Parents, age 62 or older, who were dependent on the deceased for at least half of their support.
—A surviving divorced spouse, under certain circumstances.
If the deceased was receiving Social
Security benefits, you must return the benefit received for the month of death and any later months. For example, if the person dies in July, you must return the benefit paid in August. If received by direct deposit, contact the bank or other financial institution and ask them to return any funds received for the month of death or later. If paid by check, do not cash any checks received for the month the person dies or later. Return the checks to Social Security as soon as possible.
