R and B went through a marriage ceremony in 1954. B believed in good faith at the time that she was divorced from her previous husband and that her marriage to R was therefore valid. However, it turns out that her prior marriage was not finally dissolved until May 12, 1955. After this legal impediment was removed, R and B did not subsequently go through a marriage ceremony.

Despite her marriage to R not being technically valid, B became entitled to wife’s social security benefits in February 1964 based on the “deemed” marriage provisions of the Social Security Act. A deemed marriage may provide the basis for spousal social security benefits where a couple went through a good faith marriage ceremony that would have been valid but for a legal impediment (in this case, the fact that B’s prior marriage had not yet been finally dissolved).

R and B separated in late 1964 and remained separated until R’s death.

R passed away on February 8th 1965. Spouse’s social security benefits terminate the month prior to the month in which the deceased spouse died. Thus, B’s spouse’s social security benefits ended in January 1965.

After R’s death, B applied for widow’s social security benefits based on R’s earnings record. However, even though she had been entitled to wife’s social security benefits while R was alive, the “deemed” marriage provision pertaining to widow’s benefits required that the spouses be living together in the same household at the time of the deceased spouse’s death.

Thus, unfortunately for B because she was separated from R at the time of his death, she was not entitled to widow’s social security benefits.

See Social Security Ruling (SSR) 66-44.

This material should not be construed as legal advice for any particular fact situation, but is intended for general informational purposes only. For advice specific to any individual situation, an experienced attorney should be contacted.