Social Security earnings limit confusion - do bonuses count toward the $22,320 limit?

Unfortunately, all earnings count toward the limit, including bonuses. If your W-2 shows more than $22,320 for 2024, you'll exceed the earnings limit. Based on what you shared, your total W-2 income would be $32,500 ($22,000 + $9,000 + $1,500), which is well over the limit. SSA will reduce your benefits by $1 for every $2 you earn above the limit. So if you're $10,180 over the limit, they may reduce your benefits by about $5,090 spread across 2025 payments, or they might ask for repayment.

this happened to me last year! they will send u a letter next year after they get ur tax info. they took back like $4000 from me cuz i went over by $8k. its a pain but u can set up a payment plan if u need to

The annual earnings test counts ALL earnings from work - regular wages, bonuses, commissions, vacation pay, etc. Only work-related income counts though. If you have investment income, that doesn't count toward the limit. Since you're already over for 2024, you might want to call SSA and report your estimated earnings for the year. This way they can adjust your benefits now rather than creating an overpayment you'll have to deal with later. If you don't report it, they'll eventually find out when your W-2 is processed, and you'll get a notice about repaying the excess benefits.

I found this service called Claimyr that helps you get through to SSA without the endless waiting. I was in the same boat trying to report my earnings and couldn't get anyone on the phone for days. With Claimyr (claimyr.com), they navigated the phone system and got me connected to an agent within about 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU It was worth it for me because I needed to report my new job ASAP to avoid overpayments. Once I got through, the agent helped me estimate my earnings for the year and adjusted my benefits immediately.

My husband went thru this exact thing!!! His work gave him a surprise bonus that put him over the limit. When he called SSA they told him he could actually pay back the excess amount directly to them right away instead of having them withhold future checks. Might be an option if you have any savings to tap into.

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I called SSA this morning (finally got through after several attempts) and reported my estimated earnings for the year. The agent confirmed that all earnings including bonuses count toward the limit, so I'm definitely over for 2024. They're going to adjust my upcoming payments, and I'll receive less for the remainder of the year. The agent said this will prevent a larger overpayment notice later. She also mentioned that once I reach my full retirement age (66 and 8 months in my case), the earnings limit won't apply anymore. I've decided to put in a few more hours at work to make up for the reduced SS payments. Lesson learned about the earnings limit!

THIS SYSTEM IS SO UNFAIR!!! Why do they punish people for working??? It's OUR MONEY that we paid into the system! My brother got hit with a huge overpayment because his company gave him a bonus in December that pushed him over. They took almost $4000 back from him!!! And they call it an "adjustment" like it's no big deal. RIDICULOUS!

just wondering... ur turning 66 next year right? there's a different limit for the year ur reaching FRA. its like $59,520 for 2024 but only counts earnings BEFORE the month u hit FRA. after that month there's no limit. maybe check if that helps ur situation?

I've been reading this whole thread and now I'm confused about my own situation lol. I'm getting survivors benefits from my late husband (I'm 60) and also working part-time. Does the earnings limit apply to survivors benefits too or just retirement??

I'm new to this community but dealing with a similar situation. I just turned 62 and started collecting early retirement benefits while working part-time. Reading through all these responses has been really eye-opening - I had no idea that ALL work earnings count toward the limit, including bonuses and overtime pay. It sounds like the key takeaway is to be proactive about reporting earnings estimates to SSA rather than waiting for them to discover the overage when W-2s are processed. That way you can avoid the shock of a big overpayment notice later. One question for those who've been through this - when they adjust your future payments to account for excess earnings, do they spread the reduction over the remaining months of the year, or do they sometimes just stop payments entirely for a few months?

Thanks for sharing your experience, Dylan! This is such a helpful thread for anyone dealing with the earnings limit. I'm 64 and considering early retirement benefits while continuing to work part-time, but stories like yours make me realize I need to be much more careful about tracking ALL income sources. One thing I'm curious about - you mentioned the SSA agent said your benefits would increase once you reach full retirement age to account for the months they withheld payments. Do they give you any estimate of what that increase might be? I'm trying to figure out if it's better to wait until FRA to avoid this whole earnings limit mess, or if the eventual benefit increase makes it worth dealing with the complexity now. Also, for anyone else reading this - it might be worth asking your employer about the timing of any bonuses if you're close to the earnings limit. Sometimes they have flexibility on when to pay them out, which could help with year-end planning.

This is exactly why I tell everyone to be super careful about the earnings limit! I learned this the hard way when I first started collecting benefits at 62. The thing that really caught me off guard was that vacation payouts and even unused sick leave payments count toward the limit too - not just regular wages and bonuses. One tip that helped me: I started keeping a running total of my earnings throughout the year in a simple spreadsheet. I include every paycheck, bonus, overtime, etc. That way I can see where I stand at any point and avoid surprises. Some employers will also let you defer bonuses to the next year if you ask early enough, which can be helpful for managing the limit. The good news is that once you get the hang of tracking everything and planning ahead, it becomes much more manageable. And like others mentioned, you're not permanently losing that money - it's just being redistributed to increase your future monthly payments after FRA.