Me and my partner wasn’t married we lived together for 30 yrs had a child together. I had my name changed to his last name and still go by it. He was drawing his Social Security full amount due to a accident in 2005 he passed away in 2016. Should I apply for benefits or is a waste of time I’ve been told different things
Hi. Simply living together for a long time and having a child together wouldn't make you eligible for survivor benefits. To potentially qualify for survivor benefits you and the deceased must have either been married, or your relationship would have to be recognized by the state in which you live as the equivalent of a marriage for purposes of inheritance rights (e.g. common law marriage).
The state of Tennessee doesn't recognize common law marriages, but it does have a provision regarding inheritance rights. Here is how that provision is summarized in Social Security's operations manual:
"However, where parties free to marry lived together for a long time and held themselves out to the public as husband and wife, both parties, as well as third parties, are in law not permitted to deny that they were validly married, provided there is an affirmative showing that:
1. both parties acted in good faith in that they each honestly believed the relationship constituted a valid legal marriage; or
2. the party seeking benefit of estoppel relied in good faith upon the representation of the other that the relationship constituted a valid ceremonial marriage; or
3. the cohabitation followed a defective ceremonial marriage, which the parties believed constituted a valid ceremonial marriage.
This relationship, in effect, gives the survivor and children of the marriage inheritance rights in Tennessee; it has no effect outside Tennessee."
Each state has its own rules regarding the recognition of non-marital relationships, so if you lived together with the deceased in a state(s) other than Tennessee you can check out their laws in the following section of Social Security's operations manual: https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0200305075.
In addition to meeting the above requirement, in order to be eligible for survivor benefits you would need to either a) be at least age 60, or b) be at least age 50 and disabled, or c) have a child in your care who is eligible for benefits on the deceased worker's account and who is either under age 16 or is disabled.
If you think that you might qualify for survivor benefits, there is no fee for filing an application with Social Security. At worst, they may disallow your claim. Or, you may want to consult a lawyer who is familiar with the marital inheritance rights laws in your state. However, that would likely involve a fee, unless you have access to some type of no cost legal services in your area.
Lastly, you don't mention your child's age, but he or she may be able to qualify for Social Security child's benefits if they are either a) under age 18, or b) age 18 to 19 and attending high school, or c) disabled from an impairment that began prior to age 22.
Best, Jerry
