The Surviving Spouse and Personal Affairs pages have some overlapping information. Please review both thoroughly. Information on this page is intended to be for reference, while the information on the Personal Affairs page is more detailed.
Craig Smith, Surviving Spouse and Personal
Affairs Chair
The
Surviving Spouse Virtual Chapter is open to Surviving Spouses only but you need
to register to gain access. Applications can be obtained by contacting Craig
Smith for a hard copy to mail or obtain an email version. My contact info is below craigsmith03905@yahoo.com
or call 207-703-3402. Or by contacting the two Chair persons below.
If
you have a specific question or concern the following Chairpersons are more
than willing to help you address your specific concern. Their contact
information is below:
Gail
Joyce
Micki Costello
mssvc02@gmail.com mssvc02@gmail.com
(214)
676-2132
(214) 770-4140
Death Benefit Claim Forms to
Complete and Submit to DFAS : Note: each
is available online by simply entering form number into a search engine
(google.com)
SF 1174 http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/eforms/sf1174.pdf
Claim for Unpaid
Compensation of Deceased Member
Spouse’s retired pay stopped
on the date of death. You are entitled
to pay up to this point.
(2 unrelated persons must witness signature)
With Form Attach: 1 Copy of Death Certificate (with cause)
Questions: 1-800-321-1080
VA Form 29-4125 http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-29-4125-ARE.pdf
To claim the proceeds of a Government Life
Insurance policy. This is a lump-sum
payment - if the spouse
participated.
With form attach: 1 Copy of Death Certificate with Cause.
Questions: 1-800-669-8477
DD Form 2656-7 http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/eforms/dd2656-7.pdf
Application for Survivor
Benefit Plan Annuity….SBP. If your
spouse participated, you are eligible to receive a monthly annuity, effective
the day the death occurred. Attach copy
of social security card for surviving spouse.
FMS 2231 http://www.fms.treas.gov/eft/2231.pdf
Direct Deposit Sign-Up Form. This is the standard method for payment of
your annuity. Complete Section III. A cancelled check is helpful.
IRS Form W-4P http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4p.pdf
Required because the annuity
is subject to federal income tax. We
recommend no more than1 exemption be claimed to avoid having insufficient
withholding.
With form attach: 1 Copy of Death Certificate (with cause)
Questions: 1-800-321-1080
Documents Needed for
Surviving Spouse to Obtain New ID Card
Spouse’s and Deceased
Member’s Military ID card plus one additional gov't issued photo ID
Original Long Form Death
Certificate (with cause)
Copy or Original DD Form
214, or retirement order
Copy or original of both
Birth Certificates
Copy of Marriage Certificate
1 Voided Check
Documents Needed to File for
Dependency & Indemnity Compensation (DIC)
Same as ID card, plus:
VA disability rating
determination letter (if applicable)
Proof of service in Vietnam
(if applicable and not listed on DD-214)
Paid in full receipt from
funeral home listing services provided
If surviving spouse is a
veteran: DD-214 for the spouse
Medical history records if
no service connected disease listed on death certificate
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Preparing Your
Survivors - Now
* Assemble
important papers in one place:
DD Form 214,
Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty
Birth Certificates
for both if married
Marriage and
divorce documents, if applicable
VA disability
rating decision letter (s), if applicable
Retired Activity
pay statement
Death notification
list with phone, account numbers and passwords
Social security
cards, passports, voter registration cards
Life insurance
policies and pension plan numbers and contact info
VA life insurance
policy numbers (VGLI/SGLI)
* Maintain current legal documents:
Will - Allocates
assets and to fulfills a person's final wishes
Living Will -
Pertains to life-sustaining procedures
Durable Power of
Attorney - Appoints a person (agent) to conduct affairs
Durable Health
Surrogate - agent to make health care decisions
Copy of Recorded
Pre-Need Guardian Directive
* Financial affairs:
Identify bank
accounts that are jointly or individually held
Review account
beneficiaries and contact information
Have sufficient
cash available for bills (retired pay & allotments will stop)
Document other
sources of revenue (savings accounts, insurance policies, stocks)
Document contents
of safety deposit box
* Pre-planning responsibilities:
Compare prices of
at least two funeral homes
If uncomfortable,
ask a relative or friend to assist you
Maintain funeral
director's name and phone number
Plan funeral and
burial arrangements: how, where, who, what etc.
* Make final wishes known:
What is the
preference: Burial or Cremation?
Desired
location of burial plot:
Buried
in uniform: Yes or No Memorial Service: Yes or No If desired, draft obituary
and file with important papers
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Social
Security Notification and Possible Benefits
Initial
Notification of Death: Social Security should be notified as soon as possible
when a person dies. In most cases, the funeral director will report the
person’s death to Social Security. You will need to furnish the funeral
director with the deceased’s Social Security number so he or she can make the
report.
Apply
for Benefits: Some of the deceased’s
family members may be able to receive Social Security benefits if the deceased
person worked long enough under Social Security to qualify for benefits. You
should get in touch with Social Security as soon as you can to make sure the
family receives all of the benefits to which it may be entitled. Please read
the following information carefully to learn what benefits may be available.
• A
one-time payment of $255 can be paid to the surviving spouse if he or she was
living with the deceased; or, if living apart, was receiving certain Social
Security benefits on the deceased’s record. If there is no surviving spouse,
the payment is made to a child who is eligible for benefits on the deceased’s
record in the month of death.
•
Certain family members may be eligible to receive monthly benefits, including:
—A widow or widower age 60 or older (age 50 or older if disabled); —A widow or
widower at any age who is caring for the deceased’s child under age 16 or
disabled; —An unmarried child of the deceased who is: ° Younger than age 18 (or
up to age 19 if he or she is a full-time student in an elementary or secondary
school); or ° Age 18 or older with a disability that began before age 22; —A stepchild,
grandchild, step-grandchild or adopted child under certain circumstances;
—Parents, age 62 or older, who were dependent on the deceased for at least half
of their support; and —A surviving divorced spouse, under certain
circumstances.
If the
deceased was receiving Social Security benefits, you must return the benefit
received for the month of death or any later months. For example, if the person
dies in July, you must return the benefit paid in August. If benefits were paid
by direct deposit, contact the bank or other financial institution. Request
that any funds received for the month of death or later be returned to Social
Security. If the benefits were paid by check, do not cash any checks received
for the month in which the person dies or later. Return the checks to Social
Security as soon as possible. However, eligible family members may be able to
receive death benefits for the month in which the beneficiary died.
Contacting
Social Security for more information and to find copies of publications, visit
their website at www.socialsecurity.gov or call toll free, 1-800-772-1213 (for
the deaf or hard of hearing, call our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778). They treat
all calls confidentially. They can answer specific questions from 7 a.m. to 7
p.m., Monday through Friday and can provide information by automated phone
service 24 hours a day.
Source: Social Security Administration SSA
Publication No. 05-10008 ICN 451390 Unit of Issue - HD (one hundred) November
2009