Q & A
I soon will be 60 years old and am afraid I will not qualify for widow’s benefits at that time. I was married to my husband for many years. But four years after he died, I married another man. That marriage was later annulled because of fraud on his part. Did that mistake mess up my chance to get my first husband’s Social Security?
Answer: Don’t worry. When you turn 60, you will be eligible for widow’s benefits on your first husband’s Social Security record. The fact that your second marriage ended (or because it was annulled, it legally never happened) is the key. The law says you merely have to be unmarried in order to qualify for a deceased husband’s Social Security. So, because you are now unmarried, you will get widow’s benefits on your first husband’s Social Security record when you turn 60.
Source: Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., http://www.wetmtv.com/guides/finance/story/Social-Security-Q-amp-A/WN3i5kKulkmgN7NnVL5Q2A.cspx