Social Security benefits denied at 62 due to earnings limit - working only 6 months in 2025

This is because of the first year rule with the earnings test. For the calendar year you first become entitled to benefits, SSA applies a monthly earnings test in addition to the annual test. In your case, if you earn over the monthly limit ($1,850 in 2025) in any month, you don't get benefits for that month. But more importantly, in your first year of entitlement, if you earn over the annual limit (which will be around $22,320 for 2025), you lose benefits for the ENTIRE year unless you can show you've had a legitimate work stoppage or significant reduction in hours/pay in some months. Your projected $25,200 exceeds that annual limit, so you're being denied for the whole year.

samee thing happened to my wife last yr!! the ssa doesnt care if ur working or not for part of the year, they just see the total $$$. its all about that yearly amount until you hit your full retirement age, then you can make whatever you want

You need to learn about the RET (Retirement Earnings Test) which is what's causing your issue. Basically if you're under FRA and make over certain limits, SSA withholds some or all benefits. But there's a special rule for the first year you claim that might help you - if you have legitimate non-work months where you earn under the monthly limit ($1,850 in 2025), you CAN receive benefits for those specific months regardless of your annual total. The problem is you need to prove those are genuine non-work months, not just vacation or temporary stoppage.

I had a similar issue and spent WEEKS trying to get through to SSA on the phone. Kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally tried a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an SSA agent in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. The agent explained I needed to submit a statement about my work pattern showing my non-work months were a legitimate cessation of work, not just vacation time. Once I provided this documentation, they approved my benefits for my non-work months despite being over the annual limit.

the whole system is RIGGED against working people!! they take our $$ for decades then make it impossible to get OUR BENEFITS when we need them!!!! why should we be PUNISHED for trying to work?? the government just wants to keep OUR MONEY!!!

You might qualify for an exception! I went through this last year with my seasonal fishing work. You need to apply the "special rule" for the first year of retirement. Call SSA and explain your work is truly seasonal with a complete business closure. You'll need to submit Form SSA-131 (Employer Report of Special Wage Payments) and a written statement explaining your work pattern. For my situation, I provided a letter from my employer confirming our boat doesn't operate in winter months, and they approved benefits for my genuine non-work months despite exceeding the annual limit.

why not just wait till your FRA to claim?? no earnings limit headaches then

There's a lot of confusion here, so let me clarify the exact rule. Under the special rule for the first year of retirement: 1. SSA will pay benefits for any month you earn below the monthly limit ($1,850 in 2025) AND you did not perform "substantial services" in self-employment. 2. For seasonal self-employment like landscaping, you need to demonstrate your business truly shuts down (not just that you're taking time off). This means showing you have no business operations during those months. 3. After submitting your documentation, request that SSA apply the "monthly earnings test" to your situation rather than just the annual test. This exception exists specifically for seasonal workers like you, but SSA doesn't automatically apply it - you have to proactively request and document it.

i had to deal with this last yr too and went in circles for months!! they kept asking for more proof and more proof until i finally gave up and just didn't claim until this year. The system is broken!

One more important thing - when your benefits are withheld due to earnings, they're not lost forever! Once you reach FRA, SSA will recalculate and give you credit for those months, resulting in a permanent increase to your monthly benefit amount going forward. So even if you can't get the exception for non-work months, any withheld benefits do eventually come back to you in the form of higher payments later.