Social Security WEP penalty cutting 2/3 of my spousal benefits - unfair compared to coworkers

Unfortunately, you're dealing with the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), which affects people who earned pensions from jobs not covered by Social Security. It's not actually reducing your benefit by 2/3 - the WEP modifies the formula used to calculate your benefit, resulting in a lower amount.The intent behind WEP is to remove an unintended advantage for people with non-covered pensions, since the regular SS formula is weighted to help lower-wage earners. Since your 403b pension wasn't from SS-covered employment, you're affected.Some key things to know:1. There's a WEP guarantee that limits your reduction (your reduction can't exceed 50% of your non-covered pension)2. If you have 30+ years of substantial SS-covered earnings, WEP doesn't apply3. There's a sliding scale reduction for 21-29 years of substantial earningsWhat you're experiencing isn't an \

Thank you for explaining this. It still feels incredibly unfair that my coworkers could avoid this by just transferring their 403b funds! I have maybe 15 years of SS-covered work (early jobs, then part-time while raising kids). Is there ANY way to appeal or get around this? Can I somehow convert my pension now to avoid this penalty going forward?

same thing happened to my mom!!! she worked as a teacher for 18 years and when she tried to get her ss benefits they cut it by like half. so unfair, she paid into the system for years before becoming a teacher. she tried appealing but they denied it every time. the govt just wants to keep our money!!

Right? The government steals from hardworking Americans who already paid their dues. My neighbor worked for the city for 25 years and lost almost ALL of her Social Security from her previous jobs! They call it

I'm sorry you're experiencing this frustration with the WEP. To clarify some misinformation above - transferring 403b funds doesn't actually exempt you from WEP. What likely happened with your coworkers is that they switched to positions covered by Social Security for those last 5 years.The WEP applies when you receive a pension from work not covered by Social Security. Moving money around doesn't change the fundamental fact that you earned a non-covered pension. However, there are some important exemptions:1. If you had 30+ years of substantial earnings under Social Security, WEP doesn't apply at all2. If you had 21-29 years, the WEP reduction is lessenedRegarding your specific situation, I'd recommend:1. Request your earnings record from SSA to confirm they have all your covered employment2. Double-check if your WEP reduction is correctly calculated (it should be limited to 50% of your pension)3. Consider whether you might qualify for spousal benefits if they would be higherThere are also bills in Congress to reform WEP, though none have passed yet.

I dealt with this exact situation last year. I had a relative who couldn't get through to SS for weeks trying to verify if her WEP calculation was correct. She finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an agent. They got her an appointment in 2 days. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puUTurns out SS had miscalculated her years of coverage and she was able to get it fixed. Definitely worth checking if all your earnings are recorded correctly.

So sorry you're dealing with this. The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset (its evil cousin that affects spousal benefits) are incredibly confusing and catch many people by surprise. I'm a retired financial advisor who specialized in federal benefits.You mentioned your coworkers avoided this by \

Thank you for this detailed explanation. I believe what happened at my workplace is that the district switched from a traditional 403b to a different plan that WAS covered by Social Security, so newer employees or those who stayed longer avoided this issue entirely.I'll request the detailed WEP calculation right away. Is there any specific form I need to fill out? And do I need to make an appointment or can I do this online through my SS account?

Unfortunately i dont think theres much you can do. my husband worked for railroad for 22 years which has its own pension system not SS, then worked 18 years under social security. they cut his SS benefit by almost 40% because of WEP!!! we tried everything to fight it but SSA kept saying \

That's exactly how I feel - like I'm being punished! Did you and your husband try contacting your Congressional representative? I'm wondering if that's worth trying in my case.

To answer your follow-up question about requesting a detailed WEP calculation - you'll need to call SSA directly or visit your local office. This isn't something you can do through the online portal. Ask specifically for a \

Thank you so much for this detailed advice. I'll call SSA tomorrow and specifically ask about the WEP guarantee and request the detailed calculation. I'll also contact my Congressional representative - at this point, I'm willing to try anything. It just feels so wrong that after raising my family and then working hard in my 60s, I'm being penalized this severely.

I had a similar experience with WEP after working for a state agency with a non-covered pension. I spent MONTHS trying to get through to Social Security to understand my situation - constant busy signals, disconnections, and 4-hour hold times only to be told I needed to speak to a different department.I finally discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to a real person at SSA in about 30 minutes. They have this demo video: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Saved me so much frustration!When I finally spoke with a knowledgeable agent, they explained exactly how my WEP reduction was calculated and confirmed I didn't have enough \

Thanks for sharing this service! I've been trying to get through to SSA for WEEKS about my husband's disability claim. I'm going to try this because I'm at my wits end dealing with their phone system.

One additional point about WEP that might affect your situation - the WEP reduction is smaller if you have between 21-29 years of \

Thank you for this detail! You might be right about the GPO vs WEP confusion. I'm drawing spousal benefits based on my husband's record since my own work history was limited. So it sounds like GPO might be what's affecting me?I need to check my earnings history to see if any of my part-time years would count as \

my aunt had kinda similar problem but with GPO not WEP. she lost like 75% of her widow benefits cause she worked for a school system!!! its crazy how they punish people for having certain jobs. maybe try talking to an elder law attorney? my aunt said that wouldve helped if shed known earlier.

Based on your latest comment, I believe you're dealing with the Government Pension Offset (GPO) rather than WEP. The GPO reduces spousal or survivor benefits by 2/3 of your non-covered pension amount, which matches exactly what you described.For example, if your pension is $900/month, the GPO would reduce your spousal benefits by $600 (2/3 of $900).Unfortunately, the GPO rules are even stricter than WEP in many ways. There's no reduction based on years of service or substantial earnings. The only major exemption is if you paid Social Security taxes on your last 60 months of government employment before retirement.To verify all this information:1. Log into your my.ssa.gov account2. You can view your earnings record there, but not the GPO calculation3. For the GPO details, you'll need to call SSA directlyAn elder law attorney who specializes in Social Security might be helpful, but they can't change the application of the law if it's being applied correctly. The most important thing is to verify that SSA has the correct information about your pension amount, as this directly affects how much is offset.

This makes so much more sense now! Yes, they specifically mentioned my spousal benefit being reduced by 2/3 of my pension. I never understood why it was exactly that fraction, but now I see it's built into the GPO rule.I'm definitely going to call SSA to verify they have the correct pension amount. Since my pension will eventually run out, I'm also wondering if the offset will be removed at that point? Or will they still apply the 2/3 reduction even after I'm no longer receiving the pension?

To address your question about what happens when your pension runs out: Under GPO rules, if your pension stops, the offset should stop as well. This is different from WEP, which generally continues even if your pension ends.When your pension payments end, you need to notify SSA immediately with proof that you're no longer receiving the pension. At that point, they should recalculate your spousal benefits without the GPO reduction. Make sure to keep documentation showing your pension has ended.If your pension is paid as a lump sum rather than monthly payments, SSA will calculate what the monthly amount would have been and apply the offset as if you were receiving monthly payments. Regarding your 403b specifically - some confusion might exist because 403b plans can be structured different ways. If your 403b was truly a pension from non-covered employment (no SS taxes paid), then GPO applies. But if it was more like a savings plan similar to a 401k where you contributed your own money, different rules might apply.This is definitely worth reviewing with SSA to ensure they've categorized your retirement plan correctly.

Thank you SO much for this information! This gives me some hope that at least when my pension runs out, I might get my full spousal benefit. I'll definitely keep documentation about when my pension ends.And you've given me another avenue to explore - my 403b was partly my contributions and partly employer contributions. I need to verify if SSA is treating it correctly. I'll gather all my pension documentation before calling them.I can't thank everyone enough for all this guidance. I feel much better equipped to address this situation now.