Ask Larry

I was married for 12 years and divorced. Then remarried and that marriage was for 13 years and ended in divorce when I was 58 yo. My ex husband of 12 yr marriage passed while I was divorced from 2nd marriage. I remain unmarried. My deceased ex husband died at age 71 and was receiving SS. Since I am unmarried now and at the time of his death, can I collect SS as divorced survivor?

Hi. You don't mention your current age, so I can't give you a definite answer. You must be either at least age 60, or at least age 50 and disabled, to potentially qualify for surviving divorced spousal benefits (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.04/handbook-0403.html).

It sounds like you have a lot of potential options for claiming Social Security benefits at least in the near future, so you may want strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze the options available to you in order to determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry