Social Security earnings limit before FRA - how much can I make in 2025 without penalty?
I just got approved for early Social Security retirement benefits (yay!), but I'm still planning to work part-time at my accounting firm. I'm exactly one year away from my Full Retirement Age and worried about penalties if I earn too much. Is there a specific dollar limit for how much I can earn in 2025 without getting penalized? Does this earnings limit depend on how much my SS benefit is, or is it the same amount for everyone? Also, once I hit my actual Full Retirement Age next year, does the earnings limit completely disappear? Thanks for any clarification on this!
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Sean Flanagan
The earnings limit for 2025 if you're under Full Retirement Age (FRA) is $22,320 per year. This is the same for everyone regardless of your benefit amount. If you go over that, they'll deduct $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above the limit. In the year you reach FRA, the limit jumps to $59,520 for the months before your birthday, and they only deduct $1 for every $3 over the limit. Once you hit your FRA, there's no earnings limit at all - you can earn as much as you want with no penalty!
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Anastasia Popova
•Thank you so much! So just to be clear - I turn 67 (my FRA) in June 2026. For all of 2025, I'm limited to $22,320 for the entire year, and then in 2026, I can earn up to $59,520 from January through May without penalty? And from June 2026 onward, unlimited?
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Zara Shah
be careful about thresholds, they WILL catch you. i went over by $340 in 2023 and they sent me a scary letter saying i needed to pay back almost $700!!! the system is designed to TRAP people. i had to appeal with documentation from my employer. what a NIGHTMARE dealing with them!!
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NebulaNomad
•This happened to my aunt too. The scary part is they don't warn you when you're getting close to the limit, they just send that notice later. So frustrating!
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Luca Ferrari
If you're working for someone else, they're withholding Social Security taxes from your paycheck even while you collect benefits. SSA looks at your W-2 earnings for the year, so keep careful track of your gross income. Self-employment income counts too. The $22,320 figure for 2025 is the current estimate - it might change slightly when they announce the official COLA for next year. One strategy: if you know you'll exceed the limit, you can contact SSA in advance to temporarily suspend your benefits for certain months to avoid an overpayment situation later.
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Anastasia Popova
•That's really helpful, especially about the pre-emptive suspension. I'm a W-2 employee but occasionally do some consulting work as 1099, so I need to count both. I'll track it monthly.
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Nia Wilson
dont listen to all the complicated explanations lol. just call ssa and ask them directly about your specific situation. thats what i did and they explained it way better than anyone online
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Mateo Martinez
•Good luck with that! I tried calling SSA last month and waited on hold for 3 hours before getting disconnected. Then tried again and waited another hour before giving up. Their phone system is completely overwhelmed. I ended up using Claimyr.com to get through - it reserves your spot in line and calls you back when an agent is available. Saved me hours of frustration. Here's a video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU
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Anastasia Popova
Has anyone actually had their benefits reduced because of going over the earnings limit? I'm wondering how that works practically. Do they just send you a bill, reduce future monthly payments, or what?
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Sean Flanagan
•They typically reduce your future monthly payments rather than sending a bill. If you exceed the limit, SSA will calculate how much you need to pay back and spread the reduction across the next year's payments. In extreme cases where you earned way over the limit, they might suspend benefits entirely for some months until the overpayment is recovered.
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NebulaNomad
My brother went thru this last year. The tricky part is that the earnings test is based on GROSS earnings not what you take home after taxes and stuff. Also they count bonuses and overtime too so watch out for those!
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Anastasia Popova
•Good point about the bonuses! I typically get a year-end bonus that could push me over the limit. Maybe I should ask my employer if they can defer it until after I reach FRA.
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Aisha Hussain
Anybody know if investment income counts toward the earning limit? I have some dividend stocks and rental property income besides my regular job.
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Luca Ferrari
•Good question! Investment income like dividends, interest, capital gains, and pension payments do NOT count toward the earnings limit. Only wages from employment and net earnings from self-employment count. So your dividend income is fine, but if your rental properties are considered a business rather than passive income, that might count - depends on how you file your taxes for them.
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Anastasia Popova
Thanks everyone for the helpful information! I think I have a much better understanding now. I'll keep my earnings under $22,320 for 2025, and be mindful of that higher threshold in early 2026 before I hit my FRA in June. I'm going to set up a spreadsheet to track my earnings monthly to make sure I don't accidentally go over.
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Sean Flanagan
•That's a smart approach! One more tip: the earnings limits are applied based on when you actually receive the money, not when you earn it. If you earn money in December but don't get paid until January, it counts for the new year. This can be helpful for planning around the limit.
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Alina Rosenthal
•Great plan! I'd also recommend keeping copies of all your pay stubs and 1099s throughout the year. If there's ever a discrepancy or question from SSA about your earnings, having that documentation makes the process much smoother. Also, don't forget that vacation pay and sick leave count as earnings too if you're paid for them!
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Haley Bennett
Just wanted to add a heads up about timing - if you're planning to retire mid-year in 2026 when you hit FRA, SSA uses a monthly earnings test for that transition year. So if your FRA is in June 2026, they'll look at your earnings from January-May separately from June onward. This means you could theoretically earn the full $59,520 in those first 5 months, then unlimited after June. But be careful with the monthly breakdown - if you earn too much in any single month before FRA, it can still trigger penalties even if your total for those months is under the limit.
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Nia Thompson
•That's really helpful information about the monthly test! I hadn't considered that aspect. So if I understand correctly, even though the annual limit for the FRA year is $59,520, there's also a monthly threshold I need to watch in those months before June? Do you know what that monthly limit would be, or how exactly that calculation works? I want to make sure I don't accidentally trigger a penalty by front-loading too much income into those early months of 2026.
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