My husband and me were just talking about this! Do you guys have a financial advisor who specializes in SS? Our regular investment guy doesnt really know all these complicated rules. Makes a big difference to get the right advice!

I'm new to this community but dealing with a similar situation with my parents. One thing I learned from researching this is that you might want to consider the "break-even" analysis - comparing the total benefits you'd receive by claiming at FRA vs waiting until 70. If you're in good health and have longevity in your family, waiting until 70 usually makes sense not just for the higher monthly benefit, but especially for maximizing your wife's potential survivor benefit. The crossover point is typically around age 82-83 where the delayed claiming strategy starts paying off in total lifetime benefits. But since your wife would get that higher survivor benefit for potentially decades, it's often worth the wait even if you don't personally reach that break-even age.

This has been such an enlightening thread! I'm 60 and honestly had no clue about most of these nuances around Social Security and continued work. Reading about the double benefit potential at FRA (reduction adjustment + higher earnings recalculation) is fascinating - it really changes how I'm thinking about the timing of when to file. One question I haven't seen addressed: if you're self-employed rather than a traditional W-2 employee, does the earnings test work the same way? I run a small consulting business and my income can vary quite a bit year to year. Also, for the annual recalculations based on higher earnings, do they use your net self-employment income after business deductions, or is it based on gross earnings? I imagine the variability of self-employment income could make the earnings test calculations more complex, but I'm hoping the benefit increases from higher earning years would work the same way. Thanks to everyone who has shared their experiences - this is exactly the kind of real-world insight that's so hard to find elsewhere!

This thread has been incredibly valuable! As someone who just turned 62 and is still working, I had no idea about the complexity of how Social Security interacts with continued employment. The information about annual recalculations potentially increasing benefits even after filing early, combined with the adjustment at FRA for withheld benefits, completely changes my perspective on the timing decision. I'm particularly interested in what @Diego Castillo mentioned about getting credit back for withheld months - that seems like it could significantly reduce the penalty for early filing if you're still working. My situation is similar to the original poster - I'm earning more now than ever before in my career, so it sounds like I could benefit from both the higher earnings replacing lower years AND the reduction factor adjustment. Does anyone know if there are good online calculators that can model these scenarios, or is this something where you really need to speak with an SSA representative to get accurate projections? Thanks to everyone for sharing their real experiences - this is exactly the kind of practical information that's missing from the official SSA publications!

Great to see you got the clarity you needed! Just wanted to add one more tip - since you mentioned having a pension too, you might want to consider having taxes withheld from that as well if possible. Many pension providers offer withholding options, and it could help you avoid underpayment penalties if your total tax liability is higher than expected. With both SS and pension income, you'll definitely want to keep an eye on your overall tax situation. The 10% withholding on SS sounds like a reasonable starting point!

One thing to keep in mind is that the withholding percentages on Form W-4V (7%, 10%, 12%, 22%) are fixed options - you can't choose a custom percentage like 8% or 15%. So if you find that 10% results in too big a refund or you still owe taxes, you'd need to jump to either 7% or 12%. Also, changes to your withholding don't take effect immediately - there's usually a processing delay of a month or two, so plan accordingly if you decide to adjust it later in the year.

I went through something very similar last year with my teacher's pension and spousal benefits. The retroactive period is definitely limited to 6 months - I learned this the hard way after expecting more. What really caught me off guard was how the lump sum payment affected my taxes that year, pushing me into a higher bracket temporarily. For the IRMAA situation, I'd recommend calling Medicare directly to understand exactly how your lump sum will be reported. In my case, the $7,800 retroactive payment I received in 2024 will likely impact my 2026 Medicare premiums. I wish someone had warned me to budget for this! One tip that helped me: when you get your award letter, review every detail of the WEP/GPO calculation. They initially miscalculated my pension offset by using gross instead of net pension amounts. It took three phone calls to get it corrected, but it was worth the extra $35/month in benefits. Keep all your pension documentation handy - you'll probably need it multiple times throughout this process. The whole system seems designed to confuse us, but once you understand the timeline and keep good records, it becomes more manageable. Good luck with your application!

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now and appreciate everyone sharing their experiences! Based on what I'm reading here, it sounds like the 6-month retroactive limit is definitely standard, which is disappointing but at least now I know what to expect. The IRMAA impact timeline is really helpful to understand - I hadn't realized it would be a 2-year delay before seeing the Medicare premium increases. One question I have after reading through all these responses: for those who mentioned SSA making calculation errors on the WEP/GPO amounts, how long did it typically take to get those corrections processed? I'm worried about applying and then having to wait months for them to fix any mistakes. Also, has anyone had success with the Form SSA-521 that was mentioned for distributing retroactive payments across multiple months? That sounds like it could really help with the tax implications, but I'm not sure how difficult it is to get approved for that option. This whole process seems so much more complicated than it should be, but these real-world experiences are incredibly valuable for knowing what to prepare for. Thank you all for sharing!

As a newcomer to this community, I really appreciate how helpful everyone has been in clarifying this COLA timing question! I'm also on Social Security and was confused by the same notice. It sounds like the consensus is clear - we'll see the 2.5% increase in our January payments, even though those payments technically represent December benefits. I'm grateful for the tip about checking the mySocialSecurity account online to verify the new amount before the payment arrives. That will definitely help with my budgeting planning. Thanks to everyone who took the time to explain this - it's nice to find a community where people actually help each other navigate these confusing government communications!

As someone new to receiving Social Security benefits, I really appreciate this detailed discussion! I was also confused by the timing in the official notice. It's reassuring to see multiple people confirm that the COLA increase will show up in the January payment. I'm particularly grateful for the explanation about how payments work "in arrears" - that really helped me understand why the January payment (which represents December benefits) will still include the 2025 COLA increase. The distinction between the benefit month and the payment date was the key piece I was missing. Thanks also for the suggestions about checking mySocialSecurity online and the various resources for getting through to SSA when needed. This community is incredibly helpful for navigating all these government program details!