Can't reach Social Security Administration? Claimyr connects you to a live SSA agent in minutes.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the SSA
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the SSA drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
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if its at the payment center already they probably caught the mistake themselves. thats what that dept does - checks applications for errors. thats probably why its in review. i wouldnt worry too much
UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at SSA! I took the advice about using Claimyr, and it worked perfectly - got a callback with an agent on the line within 20 minutes. The agent confirmed they had already flagged the Medicare eligibility issue for correction (someone at the payment center caught it). She added notes to my file with the correct information and said my application should be processed within the next 7-10 business days. She also confirmed my benefit amount with the GPO reduction will be $892/month, and I'll receive back payments for the two months since my FRA. Thank you all for your help and suggestions! Such a relief to have this resolved.
That's great news! So glad you got it sorted out. And good to know they had already caught the error - the system works sometimes!
Glad it worked out! Still think the whole system needs an overhaul but happy you got your issue fixed.
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btw dont forget about taxes!!!! when my wife took SS and was still working we got hit with a big tax bill that april, almost 30% of her SS was taxed!
Can I just say how frustrating it is that we have to make these complicated financial decisions? The whole system is designed to confuse seniors imho
ABSOLUTELY AGREE!!!! And the SSA website is useless for answering specific questions like this. I tried to get help from them and waited on hold for 2 HOURS only to get disconnected!!!
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One additional tip since you mentioned maximizing your benefits - make sure you're taking advantage of all the tax strategies available to you. Up to 85% of your Social Security benefits can be taxable if your combined income is high enough. Since you're working part-time, you might want to look into whether contributing to a traditional IRA (if eligible) could help reduce your overall taxable income. There are specific thresholds where Social Security taxation kicks in, and staying under those can sometimes save you money overall.
That's excellent advice I hadn't considered! My gallery recently started offering a 401(k), so I should probably increase my contributions there to reduce my taxable income. Do you know if there are any special tax considerations when switching from survivor to retirement benefits midyear?
Great question about midyear switches. There's no special tax treatment specifically for switching benefit types midyear. The IRS will treat all Social Security benefits the same for tax purposes regardless of whether they came from survivor or retirement benefits. You'll receive one combined SSA-1099 for the year showing your total benefits. However, planning your switch to minimize your overall taxable income for the year is smart financial planning!
My aunt was in the exaact same situation as you & the thing no one told her was that you HAVE to specifically REQUEST to switch from survivor to your own benefits!!! Social Security doesn't automatically give you the higher amount, you have to apply for it. She missed out on like a year of higher payments bc no one told her.
Oh my gosh, thank you for mentioning this! I was assuming they would automatically switch me to the higher benefit. I'll make sure to specifically request the change when I call them. Your aunt's experience is a good warning!
Paolo Longo
BTW they change these rules all the time! My dad was a teacher and thought he was fine, then Congress changed the formula for WEP calculation the year before he retired and it cost him like $400/month in benefits. Keep an eye on legislation too.
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Amina Bah
•This is misleading. Congress hasn't significantly changed the WEP formula since it was implemented in the 1980s. There have been proposals to modify it, but nothing has passed. The substantial earnings amount is adjusted annually for inflation, but the basic 30-year exemption rule has remained consistent.
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Keisha Taylor
To directly answer your original question: If you're currently teaching in a position where you pay into Social Security, and will have 30 years of substantial earnings under Social Security by retirement, you will NOT be subject to WEP regardless of your pension. Since you mentioned you've been teaching for 12 years with Social Security coverage and will have around 30 years total by retirement, you appear to be on track for complete WEP exemption. Just make sure you've met the substantial earnings threshold (which increases slightly each year) for each of those 30 years.
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Yara Khoury
•Thank you! This forum has been incredibly helpful. I feel much more confident about my retirement planning now and know exactly what to check in my Social Security record.
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