This entire discussion has been fantastic and really reinforces what I see regularly in my work as a retirement planning advisor. The key point everyone has correctly emphasized is that there is absolutely NO earnings limit once you reach your Full Retirement Age - this is one of the most misunderstood aspects of Social Security. @Elijah Knight - you're in a great position! Since you'll reach FRA at 67 next March, from that month forward you can earn any amount without any reduction to your Social Security benefits. Take that promotion with confidence. I'd also echo what others have said about the potential for benefit increases if your new higher earnings exceed what was used in your original calculation. SSA automatically reviews earnings each year, so continued work can actually boost your monthly benefit amount. One additional tip: consider setting up your MySocialSecurity account online now if you haven't already. It makes tracking your benefits much easier and you can see your earnings record, estimated benefits, and get official documents without having to navigate the phone system that others have mentioned struggling with. The combination of Social Security plus promotion income puts you in an excellent financial position for this phase of life. Congratulations on reaching this milestone!

The most common mistake I see clients make is confusing the earnings test with taxation of Social Security benefits - they're completely different things! Many people think that because their SS benefits might become taxable at higher income levels, that means there's still an "earnings limit" after FRA. But as everyone here has correctly stated, the earnings test disappears entirely at FRA. Another frequent confusion is around the timing in the year you reach FRA. People often think they need to wait until the year AFTER they turn 67, when actually the earnings limit ends the month they reach FRA. And yes, definitely set up your MySocialSecurity account now! It's incredibly helpful for tracking your earnings record and catching any errors early. Plus you'll be familiar with the system when you're ready to apply for benefits. The fact that this thread has generated such consistent and accurate information really shows how important it is to get multiple perspectives when planning something as crucial as retirement timing!

My mom had to do this when she started receiving her widows benefits and they made it so complicated! I think the whole social security system is stuck in 1995. Make sure you check your first payment after this is supposed to take effect to make sure they actually started the withholding. My mom thought hers was all set up but then 3 months later realized they never actually started taking the taxes out!

Just wanted to add another data point - I set up withholding for my Social Security benefits about 6 months ago and had a similar experience to what others have described. The online option wasn't available for me at the time (this was before the recent updates), so I had to mail in the W-4V form. One thing I learned the hard way: make sure you calculate what percentage you actually need! I initially chose 10% thinking that would be enough, but when I ran the numbers with my tax preparer, we realized I needed closer to 15-20% to avoid owing money. Unfortunately, since there's no 15% option, I had to go with 22% and now I'm getting a bigger refund than I'd like. Just something to keep in mind when you're deciding on your withholding percentage - it's better to err on the side of withholding a bit more rather than less, especially since changing it later requires another form submission.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Diego. Losing your husband after 44 years must be incredibly difficult, and dealing with Social Security complexity during this time makes it even more overwhelming. You've received excellent advice here from the community. I wanted to add one thing that helped when my aunt went through this same situation - she created a simple folder (both physical and digital) to keep all her Social Security related documents in one place. This included copies of correspondence with SSA, notes from phone calls, her husband's death certificate copies, and printouts from her MySocialSecurity account. When she eventually needed to call SSA again closer to age 70, having everything organized in one place made those conversations much smoother. Also, I noticed you mentioned getting different answers from friends - unfortunately, Social Security rules are so complex that even well-meaning people often share incorrect information. The community here has given you the correct guidance: you'll receive the higher of your survivor benefit OR your own retirement benefit at 70, never both simultaneously. Your strategy of taking survivor benefits now and waiting until 70 for your own retirement benefit is absolutely the right financial decision. You're maximizing your lifetime Social Security income even though you won't get both benefits at once. Take care of yourself during this difficult transition.

My deepest condolences on the loss of your husband, Diego. After 44 years together, this must be an incredibly difficult time, and I can only imagine how overwhelming it feels to navigate these complex benefit decisions while grieving. I'm really glad you found this community - you've received some outstanding advice here that's completely accurate. The key points everyone has made are spot on: you'll receive whichever benefit is higher (survivor OR your own retirement at 70), never both simultaneously, and your current strategy is financially optimal. I wanted to add one small but important detail that might help with your planning: when SSA switches you from survivor benefits to your own retirement benefit at 70 (if yours is higher), there's typically no interruption in your monthly payments. The system is designed to make this transition seamless, so you shouldn't experience any gaps in income during the switch. Also, since you mentioned working until 70, this continued employment might actually boost your eventual retirement benefit calculation if your current earnings are higher than some of your earlier career years. Social Security uses your highest 35 years of earnings, so strong earnings in your final working years can replace lower-earning years from earlier in your career. You're handling this incredibly difficult situation with such thoughtfulness and wisdom. This community will continue to be here to support you as you navigate this journey.

To directly answer your last question - if you expect to exceed the earnings limit, you should proactively report this to SSA. They don't automatically adjust it based on real-time earnings data. If you don't report it, they'll eventually catch it when tax records are reconciled, but by then you might have an overpayment that needs to be paid back.

As someone who just went through this process last year, I can confirm that SSA definitely uses your gross wages before any deductions. I learned this the hard way when I got an overpayment notice even though my Social Security taxable wages (Box 3 on W-2) were under the limit. What helped me was setting up a my Social Security account online at ssa.gov where you can report your expected annual earnings. This way they can adjust your monthly payments throughout the year instead of you having to pay back a lump sum later. Also, keep detailed records of your pay stubs - you'll need them if there are any discrepancies when they do their annual reconciliation. The good news is that once you hit your full retirement age, none of this matters anymore and you can earn as much as you want without any benefit reductions!

I'm dealing with the exact same issue! Just started receiving SS benefits last month and the W-4V percentages are so limiting. After reading through all these responses, I'm definitely going with quarterly payments too. Quick question for everyone - when you switched from withholding to quarterly payments, did you need to notify SSA that you were stopping the withholding? Or do you just submit a new W-4V with no withholding selected? I want to make sure I don't end up with both systems running at the same time by accident. Also, @GalaxyGlider, your tip about the separate savings account is brilliant. I'm setting that up today. Planning to automatically transfer 1/4 of my annual tax estimate each month so the money is there when quarterly payments are due.

As a newcomer to this community, I wanted to thank everyone for this incredibly detailed discussion! I'm about to start receiving SS benefits next month and had no idea about these withholding limitations or the quarterly payment option. Reading through all your experiences, it's clear that the SSA's system is really outdated. The fact that we can't adjust withholding percentages online in 2025 is pretty shocking. I'm definitely going to skip the W-4V hassle and go straight to quarterly payments. One thing I'm curious about - for those of you who've been doing quarterly payments for multiple years, do you find that your tax situation becomes more predictable over time? I'm trying to decide whether to be conservative with my first year estimates or try to get as close as possible to my actual liability. Also, @Malia Ponder, thanks for clarifying the process to stop withholding. I'll make sure to submit that 0% W-4V form well in advance!