OPM Survivor Benefits: What a Surviving Spouse Actually Receives

What OPM Pays a Surviving Spouse

When a federal retiree dies, the Office of Personnel Management continues a portion of the pension as a monthly survivor annuity — provided the retiree elected survivor coverage before or at retirement. The amount depends on the retirement system and the election the retiree made.

Under FERS, a full spousal survivor annuity equals 50% of the retiree's unreduced annuity. If the retiree chose a partial election (which required written spousal consent), the survivor gets 25%. Under CSRS, the maximum survivor annuity is 55% of the unreduced annuity. In both systems, OPM pays survivor benefits retroactively to the date of death once the claim is adjudicated.

A surviving spouse under FERS who is younger than 60 may also receive the FERS Survivor Supplement — a bridge payment that mimics Social Security survivor benefits until the spouse reaches age 60 and can claim actual Social Security widow or widower benefits. The supplement is subject to the Social Security earnings test ($24,480 in 2026).

Eligibility Requirements

The surviving spouse must have been married to the retiree for at least nine months before the death. OPM waives this requirement if the death was accidental or if a child was born of the marriage.

For the annuity to be payable, the retiree must have elected survivor benefits at retirement. If the retiree chose zero survivor coverage, no monthly annuity is paid to the spouse — and critically, this also terminates eligibility for continued federal health insurance under FEHB or PSHB.

How the Claim Works

After reporting the death to OPM (online at opm.gov/ReportDeath, by phone at 1-888-767-6738, or by mail), OPM assigns a CSF claim file number and mails the survivor claims package.

The surviving spouse files SF 3104 (for FERS) or SF 2800 (for CSRS) along with a certified death certificate and a certified marriage certificate. OPM processes claims in roughly 60 to 90 days, issuing interim "Quick Pay" payments during that window so the survivor isn't left without income.

Beyond the monthly annuity, OPM also pays the accrued unpaid annuity — the prorated pension earned from the first of the month through the date of death. Treasury reclaims any full monthly payment deposited after the death date, then OPM calculates and pays the prorated amount owed.

What Else the Surviving Spouse Should Claim

The OPM survivor annuity is one of several benefits. A surviving spouse should also file for:

• FEGLI life insurance — Form FE-6, filed directly with OFEGLI (not OPM)
• TSP account balance — reported through the TSP Life Events Hub or Form TSP-17
• Social Security survivor benefits — now payable without any GPO or WEP offset since the Social Security Fairness Act repealed both provisions for benefits from January 2024 onward

The Federal Retiree Death Benefits Guide walks through every claim in sequence — OPM, OFEGLI, TSP, FEHB/PSHB, and Social Security — with the forms, deadlines, and dollar examples so nothing gets missed.

The Health Insurance Connection

Survivor annuity eligibility directly controls whether the spouse keeps federal health insurance. Under FEHB and PSHB rules, the surviving spouse can continue coverage only if they're entitled to a monthly survivor annuity and the retiree was enrolled in a Self Plus One or Self and Family plan at death. Without a survivor annuity, health coverage ends on the last day of the month of death — the spouse's only bridge is 36 months of Temporary Continuation of Coverage at 102% of the full premium.

This makes the survivor annuity election one of the most consequential decisions a federal employee makes at retirement — and one of the most important claims to file correctly after a death.

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