Social Security FRA confusion - does 66 and 4 months mean first day or my actual birthday?

You reach your FRA on the FIRST day of the month in which you reach that age. So if your FRA is 66 and 4 months, you reach it on the 1st day of the month that's exactly 4 months after the month you turned 66. Your actual birth date during the month doesn't matter for this calculation. Just so you know, if you call the SSA directly to ask about this, you might be waiting on hold for HOURS. I had this exact question last year and tried calling multiple times - kept getting disconnected or waiting 2+ hours. I eventually used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU They connected me quickly and the agent confirmed exactly what I said above - FRA is always the 1st day of the month you reach that age.

Not quite right - if your born on 22nd of month, you don't hit FRA on 22nd of that later month. Its ALWAYS 1st of the month when u hit that age, so yep the 1st of the month 4 months after you turn 66

I went through this EXACT confusion last year!!!! So frustrating that the SSA doesn't explain this clearly on their website. Yes, your FRA is reached on the FIRST DAY of the month where you hit that age milestone. The day of the month you were born doesn't matter AT ALL for calculating FRA. When I was planning, I created a little timeline to help me understand: - Birth date: 3/15/1957 - FRA for my birth year: 66 and 6 months - Turned 66: 3/15/2023 - Reached FRA: 9/1/2023 (first day of the month 6 months after turning 66) So in your case, if your FRA is 66 and 4 months, you'll reach it on the first day of the 4th month after you turn 66.

Something important to note - the only exception to the "first of the month" rule is if you were born on the 1st of the month. In that case, Social Security considers you to have attained that age the day BEFORE - on the last day of the previous month. So if you were born on May 1, 1957, SSA would consider you to have reached age 66 on April 30, 2023. Then with an FRA of 66 and 6 months, you'd reach FRA on October 31, 2023, not November 1. I don't think this applies to your situation since you mentioned your birthday is on the 22nd, but it's a quirky rule worth knowing about.

I'm so glad you asked this! I had no idea about the first of the month thing. I'm 64 and planning to claim at 67 (my FRA) but was going to wait until my actual birthday month. Sounds like I can actually claim one month EARLIER than I thought? That's an extra month of benefits!

Another important thing to understand is that benefits are paid in the month FOLLOWING the month they're due for. So when you reach FRA on the 1st of a month, your FIRST full FRA benefit payment would arrive the following month. For example, if you reach FRA on June 1, 2026, your June benefit would be paid in July 2026. This is relevant if you're trying to coordinate exactly when the higher payment amount hits your bank account for budgeting purposes.

congrats on getting so close to retirement! i'm still 15 years away but trying to learn all this stuff early. this thread has been super helpful

I went to my local Social Security office with almost this EXACT question and the lady there was so rude to me, acted like I was stupid for asking. Like we're all supposed to be born knowing this stuff?! Ugh. Glad you got better answers here than I did there.

To summarize what everyone has said: 1. You reach FRA on the FIRST DAY of the month in which you attain the necessary age (66 and 4 months in your case) 2. Your actual date of birth within the month is irrelevant (except for the special rule for people born on the 1st) 3. Benefits are paid in the month FOLLOWING the month they're due for 4. If you file exactly at FRA (not before or after), you'll receive 100% of your Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) If you file before FRA, your benefit is permanently reduced. If you file after FRA, you earn Delayed Retirement Credits of 8% per year until age 70. These are important considerations when deciding exactly when to file.

Just wanted to add one more helpful tip for anyone reading this thread - when you do decide to file, you can actually apply for Social Security benefits online at ssa.gov up to 4 months before you want your benefits to start. This gives you plenty of time to get everything processed without any delays. Also, if you're married, don't forget to consider spousal benefits and survivor benefits in your planning. Sometimes it makes sense for one spouse to file early while the other delays to maximize the household's total lifetime benefits. The timing can get pretty complex when you factor in both spouses' ages and benefit amounts. Good luck with your retirement planning! It sounds like you're being really thoughtful about getting the timing right.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm dealing with the same confusion right now. My FRA is also 66 and 4 months, and I was planning to wait until my actual birthday in the 4th month. Reading through all these responses, it's clear that I can actually file on the 1st of that month instead of waiting for my birthday. One question though - if I file right at my FRA (on the 1st of the month), will there be any delay in processing my application that might push my first payment back? I'm worried about timing this perfectly and then having some administrative delay mess up my planning. Has anyone here experienced processing delays when filing right at FRA?

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation and was getting so frustrated trying to find clear information about FRA timing. The SSA website is confusing and when I tried calling, I was on hold for over an hour before giving up. Just to make sure I understand correctly - if my birthday is September 15th and my FRA is 66 and 6 months, then I would reach FRA on March 1st of the year I turn 66 and 6 months, right? Not on March 15th when I actually turn that age? I'm also curious - does anyone know if there's a difference between filing for retirement benefits versus filing for spousal benefits when it comes to this timing? My wife is already receiving her benefits and I'm wondering if the same "first of the month" rule applies to spousal benefits too. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it's so much more helpful than trying to navigate the government websites alone!

This has been such an enlightening discussion! I'm 63 and starting to plan my Social Security strategy, and I had the exact same confusion about FRA timing. Reading through everyone's experiences really clarifies things. One additional resource I wanted to share - the SSA has a retirement estimator tool on their website (ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/estimator.html) that can help you see how your monthly benefit amount changes based on when you file. It's pretty helpful for comparing scenarios like filing at 62 vs FRA vs waiting until 70. Also, for those mentioning spousal benefits - don't forget that if you're eligible for both your own retirement benefit and spousal benefits, SSA will automatically pay you the higher of the two amounts. You can't "stack" both benefits, but they'll make sure you get the maximum you're entitled to. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and knowledge. It's so much better getting real-world advice from people who've actually navigated this process!

This thread has been so helpful! I'm 65 and was completely confused about this same timing issue. My FRA is 66 and 2 months, and I was planning to wait until my actual birthday in that second month before filing. Now I understand I can file on the 1st of that month instead - that's potentially thousands of dollars I would have missed out on by waiting those extra weeks! One thing I learned the hard way that might help others - when I was researching this, I made the mistake of looking at some of those "Social Security maximization" websites that charge fees for advice. They were telling me the same information that's been shared here for free! Save your money and use resources like this community instead. Also, for anyone who's married like me, make sure you understand how your filing decision affects your spouse's potential survivor benefits. If I delay past my FRA to get those 8% annual increases until age 70, that higher benefit amount becomes the survivor benefit for my wife if I pass away first. It's another factor to consider in the timing decision. Thanks everyone for sharing your knowledge - this community is a goldmine of practical information!

This conversation has been incredibly educational! I'm 64 and have been dreading trying to figure out the timing for my Social Security filing. My FRA is 66 and 8 months, and like the original poster, I was completely confused about whether that meant waiting until my actual birthday in the 8th month or if there was some other calculation. Reading through everyone's responses, it's now crystal clear that I'll reach FRA on the 1st day of the month that's 8 months after I turn 66. That's such a relief to finally understand! I especially appreciate the real-world examples people shared - seeing the actual timelines really helped it click for me. And the warnings about those paid services charging for free information are spot on. I almost signed up for one of those "optimization" consultations before finding this thread. One question for the group: has anyone here actually delayed filing past their FRA to get those delayed retirement credits? I'm trying to decide if it's worth waiting until 70 to maximize my monthly benefit, but I'm worried about the risk of policy changes or health issues. Would love to hear from anyone who's wrestled with that decision. Thanks to everyone who contributed to this discussion - you've saved me hours of confusion and probably prevented me from making a costly timing mistake!