DONT FORGET that if you're on Medicare and have the premiums deducted from your SS payment, the SSA-1099 will show the GROSS amount before those deductions! The Medicare premiums could be deductible on your Schedule A if you itemize and meet the threshold. Learned that one the hard way!!

Just wanted to add that if you're worried about calculating the taxable portion of your benefits, most tax software (TurboTax, H&R Block, etc.) will do this automatically when you enter the amounts from your SSA-1099. The software walks you through it step by step and handles all the complex calculations with the worksheets. Since this is your first year with SS benefits, using tax software might give you more confidence that everything is calculated correctly, especially with your other income sources. You can also always double-check the results against the IRS worksheets in Publication 915 if you want to verify the calculations yourself.

I just wanted to chime in as another person who's helped family navigate this exact situation! My mother-in-law went through the same worry when she started working part-time at 65. The peace of mind that comes from understanding the FRA rules is huge - she was so stressed thinking her benefits would get cut or messed up. One additional thing I'd mention is that it's worth helping your mom understand WHY she doesn't need to report at FRA. The Social Security Administration designed the system so that once you reach full retirement age, you've "earned" your full benefits regardless of work income. This encourages people to keep working if they want to, which actually helps the overall Social Security system since they're still paying into it through payroll taxes. Also, if she's anything like my mother-in-law, she might feel guilty about "taking Social Security while working" - but there's absolutely nothing wrong with that! She paid into the system her whole career and earned those benefits. Working at 66 is actually helping fund Social Security for future generations. The my Social Security account really is worth setting up even if she doesn't need to report wages. Being able to access her information digitally will save so many headaches down the road!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm really impressed by how helpful and knowledgeable everyone has been in this thread! I'm actually dealing with a very similar situation with my own parent, and reading through all these responses has answered questions I didn't even know I had. The clarification about FRA rules is particularly valuable - like many others here, I was under the impression that ANY work while receiving Social Security needed to be reported, regardless of age. Learning that there's no earnings limit after reaching Full Retirement Age is such a relief! I'm also grateful for all the practical tips about setting up the my Social Security account, especially the advice about mail verification for those who might struggle with the online identity questions. The insider perspective from the SSA employee was incredibly helpful too. This is exactly the kind of real-world guidance that's so hard to find on official government websites. Thank you to everyone who took the time to share their experiences and knowledge - it's going to make navigating this process so much easier for families like mine!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for sharing such helpful information! I'm in a similar situation - just started receiving Social Security benefits this year and had no idea about the SSA-1099 forms. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly educational. I especially appreciate learning about the MySocialSecurity online accounts and the voluntary tax withholding option. It's reassuring to know there are multiple ways to access these forms and that the community here is so supportive of newcomers navigating the Social Security system for the first time. Looking forward to participating more in discussions and hopefully helping others as I learn more about the process!

As someone new to the community and also navigating Social Security benefits for the first time, I want to add a practical tip that I learned the hard way - make sure to check your mailbox regularly during late January and early February! I almost missed mine last year because it came in a plain white envelope that looked like junk mail. The SSA-1099 doesn't come in any special SSA-branded envelope, so it's easy to overlook. Also, if you have a P.O. box or use a mail forwarding service, double-check that your address is exactly correct in your MySocialSecurity account, including any apartment numbers or suite numbers. Even small discrepancies can cause delivery delays. Setting up the online account really is the way to go for peace of mind - you can download your forms as soon as they're available and not worry about mail issues at all!

I'm in the exact same boat! Just turned 62 and created my mySocialSecurity account last week after multiple verification attempts. Like everyone else here, there's no "Apply for Benefits" button anywhere on my dashboard - just calculators and account info. My husband started collecting his retirement benefits about 4 months ago, and I've been trying to figure out how to apply for spousal benefits since I only worked part-time for about 10 years and don't have enough credits for my own retirement. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - it's clear that being under full retirement age is why we can't apply online, but SSA does a terrible job of explaining this upfront! I was starting to think I was technologically incompetent. The website should absolutely have a notice explaining when online applications aren't available instead of leaving us all confused. I'm going to try the Monday morning 8 AM calling strategy that so many people have recommended. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread has been more informative than hours of searching the SSA website!

I'm dealing with this exact same frustrating situation! Just turned 61 and set up my mySocialSecurity account last week, but like everyone else here, there's absolutely no application button anywhere. My husband has been receiving his retirement benefits for about a year now, and I need to apply for spousal benefits since I only worked sporadically and don't have enough work credits. Reading through all these responses has been such a huge help - it's clear that the SSA system just doesn't allow online applications for spousal benefits when you're under full retirement age, but they do absolutely nothing to warn you about this! I've been searching through every menu thinking I was missing something obvious. The website design is really poor in this regard - they should have a clear notice upfront explaining when you need to call instead. I'm definitely going to try that Monday morning 8 AM strategy everyone keeps mentioning. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - this thread has been way more helpful than the actual SSA website!

Thank you all for such helpful information! I've learned so much: - IRA withdrawals won't affect the earnings test (big relief) - We can use the monthly rule for my wife's first year of retirement - We should expect 85% of our SS to be taxable (not great news) - We might want to reconsider having my wife claim early We'll definitely sit down with a financial advisor to optimize our strategy. The suggestion about her waiting until FRA or even 70 is interesting - I hadn't considered the survivor benefit angle. I really appreciate everyone taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences!

Welcome to the community! I'm new here but wanted to share something that might help with your tax situation. Since you mentioned being concerned about having 85% of your SS benefits taxed with your planned income levels, you might want to look into tax-loss harvesting from any taxable investment accounts you have, or consider timing your IRA withdrawals more strategically. For example, instead of taking $60K annually from IRAs, you could take larger withdrawals in years when you have lower income (maybe due to medical expenses or other deductions) and smaller withdrawals in years when your income is already high. This could help manage which tax bracket you're in each year. Also, if you have any charitable giving plans, qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) directly from your IRA to charity after age 70.5 can count toward your required minimum distributions but won't be included in your taxable income - which could help reduce that combined income calculation for SS taxation. Just some thoughts from someone who's been researching similar strategies for my own retirement planning!