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!
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- 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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wait i thought IRA was better than individual 401k for most people? my brother in law said individual 401ks have more paperwork and fees. did your advisor explain why he recommended that instead?
Individual 401ks (also called Solo 401ks) actually have higher contribution limits than IRAs. For 2024, you can contribute up to $23,000 as employee deferral plus about 25% of your business income as employer contribution, up to a total of $69,000. IRAs are limited to $7,000/year ($8,000 if over 50). They do require more paperwork once they exceed $250k in assets, but for high-earning self-employed people, the higher contribution limits often outweigh the administrative burden.
Thanks to everyone for the helpful responses! This community is amazing. To summarize what I learned: 1. 401k rollovers don't affect SS benefit calculations in any way 2. Social Security only cares about my earnings record where I paid FICA/self-employment tax 3. I need to be careful about self-employment tax reporting to keep building my SS record 4. I'll need to file Form 5500-EZ once my individual 401k exceeds $250k 5. Retirement account withdrawals can affect how my SS benefits are taxed in retirement This gives me a lot more confidence moving forward with my rollover plan. I'll be creating an account on ssa.gov to check my earnings history too. Thanks again!
Smart plan!! Make sure you ALSO download and SAVE your SS statement from the website!! Sometimes the system has outages and it's GOOD to have your records saved locally!!
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my frend had same problem she went 2 congressman office and they fixed everything in 2 weeks!! try that maybe?
Thank you everyone for the suggestions! I'm going to try using the specific terminology that was recommended when I call next time - "Medicare Beneficiary Statement" and "Special Notice Flag" seem like the magic words I need. If I can't get through on the phone, I'll try that Claimyr service someone mentioned. As a last resort, I like the idea of contacting my congressman's office - I hadn't thought of that. It's somewhat comforting to know I'm not the only one dealing with this WEP/GPO communication black hole. I'll update here if I make progress!
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i filed at 62 while working part time and regret it so much!!! they take back so much of my check some months i barely get anything. plus when i do fully retire my benefit is permanently lower. wish i had just waited.
If it's been less than 12 months since you first filed, you might be able to withdraw your application! It's called a Form SSA-521. You have to pay back all the benefits you've received, but then it's like you never applied at all and your benefit can grow again. Worth looking into if you're really regretting your decision! But if it's been over 12 months, unfortunately you're locked in.
Based on what you've shared, waiting until your consulting work ends makes the most financial sense. One additional factor to consider: tax implications. When you're working and also receiving Social Security benefits, up to 85% of your SS benefits may become taxable depending on your combined income. This is separate from the earnings test and is another reason many working people delay benefits. If you both have solid earnings records, a common strategy for married couples in good health is for the higher earner to delay until 70 (maximizing the eventual survivor benefit) while the lower earner claims at FRA. This provides some income flow while still optimizing your household's lifetime benefits.
I hadn't even thought about the tax angle! That's a really good point. And yes, my husband's benefit will be about 30% higher than mine based on our earnings histories. I'll definitely look more into the strategy you suggested about me claiming at FRA and him waiting until 70. Thank you for this detailed insight!
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Wait isn't the earnings limit going up for 2025? I thought I saw somewhere it was going to be more than $22,340?
You're right to question this. The 2025 limit hasn't been officially announced yet. The $22,340 figure is likely an estimate based on previous COLA increases. The actual 2025 limit will be announced in October 2024, and it will probably be a bit higher depending on the COLA for 2025. For planning purposes though, the $22,340 estimate is reasonable.
dont forget they also look at how many months before u reach FRA... the earnings limit is different in the year u reach full retirement age too
Good point. I won't reach my FRA until 2029, so I'll have the lower earnings limit for several years. I'll need to be careful about any part-time work I might do after officially retiring.
Connor Byrne
When my sister turned 66 (her FRA) she got a job and her benefit check went UP the next year! Something about recalculation of her benefits because she was working again. So working might actually help your benefit amount in the long run too!
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Miguel Diaz
•That's correct. If you work after beginning benefits and your earnings are higher than one of your previous 35 highest earning years (which are used to calculate your benefit), SSA will automatically recalculate your benefit amount the following year. However, this applies to retirement benefits based on your own record, not necessarily survivor benefits.
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Zainab Ahmed
I think what matters most is how much this job is gonna pay you. If it's just a few hours a week maybe you don't even hit the limit? My cousin works at Walmart just 15 hours a week and stays under just fine.
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Ava Johnson
•The position would be about 20 hours a week at $23/hour, so that would be around $1,840 monthly or approximately $16,560 before reaching FRA in October. Sounds like I'd still be under the limit based on what everyone has shared!
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