hi,
i filed for survivor benefits early (age 62) in 2019 because i was told i needed to start the process in the usa in order to claim a survivor benefit due from some work abroad in our earlier married years. it turns out that was not true, but i discovered it too late to revoke my application.
in any case, my benefits have been suspended from the beginning because i earn well over the earnings limit, so i have not been paid anything to date.
my question is -- if i continue to work and earn above the limit until my full FRA, will the benefit still be reduced? i understand that SSA will "restore" the full amount, but i have found conflicting information about whether the recalculation will be immediate or the full amount will be "restored" over a number of years, and how many years that is.
i plan to claim the survivor benefit and defer my own benefit to age 70. i am concerned i will lose out on what would have been the full amount.
i have not been able to get a response from SSA because i am out of the country at the moment.
thanks for any help!

Hi,

No. If you earn too much to actually be paid any benefits until you reach full retirement age (FRA), Social Security will remove the reduction for age that was initially applied to your benefit rate for filing early. That reduction removal would be effective with your benefit payment for the month you reach FRA, but the rate adjustment won't actually be processed immediately. However, when the rate adjustment does get processed, Social Security will pay you any back pay that you have coming in a lump sum.

Alternatively, you could request to withdraw the claim that you previously filed and then reapply for survivor benefits at a later date. Social Security requires claims for Social Security retirement benefits to be filed within 12 months of the claimant's first month of benefit entitlement, but as far as I know that policy doesn't apply to survivor benefit claims (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/withdrawal.html).

If you do withdraw, though, you'll want to be sure to reapply for your survivor benefits as soon as your earnings would permit at least some benefits to be payable. Assuming that your own Social Security retirement benefit rate will be higher than your survivor rate, your best strategy would be to claim your survivor benefits as soon as your earnings would permit payment of at least some benefits, even if that's before FRA. You could then file for your own higher benefits effective at age 70.

However, if you're absolutely certain that your earnings will be high enough to prevent payment of any survivor benefits prior to the month you reach FRA, it would probably be easier not to withdraw and then reapply later. Our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) could help you determine your optimal filing strategy if you decide to withdraw your previous claim.

Best, Jerry