SSR 60-1. CHILD MARRIED AND DIVORCED BEFORE FILING EFFECTIVE APPLICATION
- Where child under age 18 married after death of insured person but was divorced before filing application for child's insurance benefits, held, such child would be "unmarried" at the time of filing his application and would be entitled to child's insurance benefits if all other requirements are met.
- Where disabled child over age 18 filed application for child's insurance benefits but was disallowed because he was married, but after obtaining a divorce he filed another application, held, such child would be unmarried at the time of filing his subsequent application and would be entitled to child's insurance benefits if all other requirements are met.
M died in June 1948, survived by C who was found to have been dependent on M at the time of her death. C was born in July 1933 and married in September 1948. In March 1951, she was divorced and an application for child's benefits was filed on her behalf in April 1951.
Section 202(d)(1) of the Social Security Act provides in pertinent part that a child of an individual entitled to old-age or disability insurance benefits or of a deceased insured person shall be entitled to child's benefits if the child:
- "(A) has filed application for child's insurance benefits,
- (B) at the time such application was filed was unmarried and either (i) had not attained the age of eighteen or (ii) was under a disability * * * which began before he attained the age of eighteen * * *."
Accordingly, the question in this case is whether C would be considered "unmarried" at the time application for child's insurance benefits was filed on her behalf.
The term "unmarried" as used in subsection 202(d)(1)(B) is interpreted as meaning not having a husband or wife at the time of filing application, so that a child whether male or female who was widowed or divorced at the time of filing first application would be considered an unmarried child.
C was "unmarried" at the time application for child's insurance benefits was filed on her behalf since she did not have a husband at that time. Accordingly, it is held that C would be entitled to child's benefits if she meets all the other requirements.
F died in 1952, survived by a son, C, who had been disabled from birth. C was married in 1954. In 1957, C filed application for child's insurance benefits which was disallowed because he was married. In 1958, C's wife obtained a divorce from him and C again filed application for child's insurance benefits in June of that year.
In this case, C did not have a wife at the time of filing his second application in June 1958 and, therefore, he was "unmarried" at that time. But the question arises whether his previous disallowance on the grounds that he was married would affect his subsequent entitlement.
Disallowance of a prior application will not preclude entitlement to benefits on the basis of a subsequent application if all the requirements for entitlement to benefits are met at the time of the subsequent application. Though C's previous application was disallowed, the question of whether he was "unmarried" at the time his subsequent application was filed is determined by his status as of that time. Therefore, C was "unmarried" at the time of filing his subsequent application for child's insurance benefits, since he did not have a wife at that time.
Accordingly, it is held that C would be entitled to child's insurance benefits if he meets all the other requirements.
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