I have been collecting SS since I turned 66 1/2 as a widow (survivor) under my ex-husband's account. I did not retire until August 2019 from my federal job. I have turned 70 (Dec 2020). Am I now required to switch to my own account as I am now 70 yrs. old? There is a substantial difference between what I have been receiving and what I would receive under my own ss. Do I have the option of continuing on my survivor account?

Hi,

No, you aren't required to ever apply for your own Social Security retirement benefits, nor would it likely be advantageous for you to do so unless your own benefit rate is higher than your survivor rate. You're free to continue drawing just your survivor benefits indefinitely.

Since you mentioned retiring from a federal job, as long as you paid Social Security taxes on all of your earnings then if you receive a federal pension it wouldn't adversely affect your survivor benefits. However, if you receive a federal pension based on your earnings that were exempt from Social Security taxes, then your Social Security survivor benefits would likely need to be offset by 2/3rds of the amount of your pension (https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10007.pdf). If you do receive a government pension based on non-Social Security covered earnings, you are required to report that fact to Social Security.

Best, Jerry