Survivor Benefits Are Not Automatic—These Mistakes Can Leave Families Without the Income They’re Counting On

Key Takeaways

• Survivor benefits for public sector retirees are not automatic. You must elect them during the retirement process to ensure your family receives support after your death.

• Mistakes like failing to submit required forms, misunderstanding eligibility rules, or overlooking updates after life changes can permanently reduce or eliminate survivor income.

Survivor Benefits Only Work If You Elect Them

As a government employee, you may assume your family will automatically receive a portion of your retirement after your death. That is not the case. Survivor benefits must be specifically elected during the retirement process, and there are financial trade-offs involved.

When you retire under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) or the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), you are offered the option to elect a survivor annuity for your spouse or other eligible dependents. Electing a full or partial survivor annuity reduces your monthly pension but ensures that a portion continues to your survivor if you pass away first.

Failing to make that election at retirement could mean your spouse or dependent receives nothing.

Two Election Options—and Two Different Outcomes

FERS and CSRS each offer two levels of survivor annuity options:

• Full Survivor Annuity: Provides your survivor with 50% of your unreduced annuity. This option typically reduces your monthly pension by 10%.

• Partial Survivor Annuity: Provides your survivor with 25% of your unreduced annuity. This usually costs you about 5% of your pension.

If you decline both options entirely, your pension remains higher during your lifetime, but your family gets nothing after your death.

Under FERS, if you’re married, the law requires you to provide a full survivor annuity unless your spouse consents in writing to a lesser amount or none at all. Without that signed spousal consent form, your retirement application will not be processed with a reduced survivor benefit.

Retirees Must Understand the Role of FEHB in Survivor Benefits

The impact of your election goes beyond just the pension. If your spouse is covered under your Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) plan, they cannot continue their FEHB coverage after your death unless you’ve elected at least a partial survivor annuity for them.

This rule often surprises retirees. Many believe their spouse will continue health coverage automatically. But the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) requires that the survivor be eligible for a survivor annuity in order to retain FEHB coverage.

If you waive the survivor benefit altogether, your spouse’s access to FEHB ends permanently at your death.

You Can’t Fix It Later

Survivor elections are locked in once you retire. You cannot go back and change your election later without major restrictions. Even if your financial situation changes or you have a change of heart, the initial election generally stands.

There are only a few limited exceptions:

• Marriage after retirement: You can add a new spouse within 2 years of the marriage, but this may involve a reduction to your annuity and payment of back premiums.

• Divorce after retirement: A court order may direct that your former spouse receives a portion of your annuity or survivor benefits.

• Death of current spouse: If your spouse dies and you remarry, you may be able to elect a survivor benefit for the new spouse, but only within strict timeframes.

Outside of these exceptions, you cannot add survivor coverage later if you originally waived it. That’s why your initial decision at retirement has lasting consequences.

Divorce Orders Can Override Your Intentions

Many retirees are surprised to learn that a divorce decree or court order related to a property settlement can require you to provide a survivor benefit to a former spouse. This is enforceable under federal law, even if you remarry.

The court order must meet OPM requirements and be properly filed. If you fail to submit the order to OPM, or if it is improperly worded, your intentions may not be honored.

Also, if you later try to provide a survivor benefit to a new spouse, OPM may reject it if there is already a court-ordered benefit in place for a former spouse.

Make sure any divorce order is reviewed by a retirement specialist before you finalize retirement.

Death While Still Employed Has Different Rules

If you pass away while still working in a public sector role covered by FERS, your spouse may receive a basic death benefit and a survivor annuity, but only if you had at least 18 months of creditable civilian service and were married for at least 9 months.

The basic death benefit in 2025 is a lump sum of $41,172.80 plus 50% of your final salary or high-3 average (whichever is higher). This amount increases annually based on COLA.

Your spouse may also receive a survivor annuity equal to 50% of your projected FERS annuity, provided you met the eligibility requirements. But again, if there was no valid marriage or qualifying service time, the benefit will not be paid.

If you die before retirement, your survivor benefits do not depend on an election, but rather on statutory eligibility. Still, you must ensure that your beneficiary and marital status records are accurate and up to date with your agency.

Common Errors That Permanently Reduce or Deny Survivor Benefits

Public sector employees often make several costly mistakes when it comes to survivor benefits:

• Failing to submit spousal consent: If you elect less than a full survivor annuity under FERS and your spouse doesn’t sign a notarized consent form, your retirement may be delayed or default to a full annuity.

• Ignoring FEHB survivor rules: Without a survivor annuity, your spouse loses FEHB coverage for life.

• Relying on informal agreements: Verbal promises or wills do not override what’s on your retirement paperwork or what’s filed with OPM.

• Outdated beneficiary designations: If you haven’t updated your designations after a divorce, marriage, or death, benefits could go to someone you didn’t intend.

• Misunderstanding remarriage rules: Survivor annuities may stop or be reinstated depending on your survivor’s age and whether they remarry.

Survivor Benefits and Social Security Coordination

If your spouse is also eligible for Social Security survivor benefits, the interaction between your FERS or CSRS annuity and Social Security can be complex.

While your survivor benefit under FERS is not affected by Social Security, some spousal Social Security benefits may be impacted by the Government Pension Offset (GPO). However, as of 2025, the Social Security Fairness Act has repealed the GPO, meaning surviving spouses are no longer penalized for receiving a government pension.

This repeal restores full spousal Social Security benefits even if the surviving spouse receives a FERS or CSRS survivor annuity. Still, it’s important to consider both benefits when planning your overall retirement income.

How to Protect Your Survivor’s Financial Future

To make sure your family receives the income they are expecting, follow these steps before and during retirement:

• Review survivor options carefully: Understand the cost and benefit of full and partial annuities.

• Complete all required paperwork: Submit spousal consent and any required elections before finalizing retirement.

• Confirm eligibility for FEHB continuation: Your survivor must be eligible for an annuity to keep FEHB.

• Keep your records updated: Notify your agency and OPM of changes in marital status or beneficiary designations.

• Consult a licensed professional: Retirement counselors can help ensure your elections align with your long-term goals.

Survivor Benefit Decisions Are Not Reversible—So Make Them Count

One of the most overlooked aspects of retirement planning is what happens after you die. Unfortunately, this is where many mistakes become irreversible.

Whether it’s electing no survivor benefit to increase your pension, assuming health benefits continue automatically, or misunderstanding your spouse’s eligibility, these decisions can dramatically affect the financial security of those you leave behind.

If you’re approaching retirement, take the time to review your survivor benefit options, weigh the long-term implications, and make an informed decision. You’ve worked hard to earn your retirement benefits—make sure your family receives the protection they’re counting on.

Speak with a licensed professional listed on this website to evaluate your individual case and get the guidance you need to protect your survivors.