Social Security earnings limit confusion - does pre-retirement 2025 income count toward $22,340 limit?

Good question! For the year you first retire, Social Security applies a monthly earnings test rather than the annual test. So for 2025, they'll only look at your earnings AFTER you start collecting benefits. Since you're planning to retire in December, they'll only evaluate your December earnings against a monthly limit (which would be $22,340 ÷ 12 = about $1,862 per month). Your January-November earnings won't affect your benefits at all. Just make sure you report your retirement to SSA when you apply.

When I retired, they still counted all my earnings for that year and took back most of my benefits!! Call them directly to make sure. SS rules are so complicated.

My sister just went through this last year! They definitely only counted her earnings after she started collecting. She retired in October but had already earned like $60k for the year, and it wasn't a problem at all. Just make sure you tell them you're retiring when you apply for benefits.

To expand on what others have said, this is covered under what SSA calls the "special earnings limit rule" or sometimes the "first year rule." In your first year of retirement, you get to use the monthly earnings test instead of the annual test. For 2025, you can receive full benefits for any month you earn $1,862 or less (that's $22,340 ÷ 12) AND you don't perform "substantial services" in self-employment. SSA considers substantial services as working more than 45 hours a month in self-employment. So as long as you're truly retired in December, and don't earn more than $1,862 that month, your January-November earnings won't affect your benefits at all. In 2026, they'll switch to looking at your annual earnings.

My husband and I JUST dealt with this!!! We tried calling Social Security for months to confirm exactly how this works and kept getting disconnected or waiting HOURS. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got through to SSA in 20 minutes after trying for WEEKS on our own. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent confirmed exactly what others are saying - they only count earnings AFTER you start collecting benefits in your first retirement year. Such a relief because my husband had already earned over $45k before retirement.

I thINK they look at ALL your earnings for the year!!!!! I got hit with this last year and they took back most of my payments. The SS office said I earned too much for the year even though I retired in August!!! So frustrated with the whole system!!!! 😡😡😡

Lots of confusion on this thread. Let me share the EXACT rule from SSA: "In the first year that you retire, we use a monthly earnings test which only applies to the months after you retire. Even if you earn more than the yearly limit before you retire, you will receive payments for months after you retire, if your monthly earnings are under the monthly limit." So if you retire in December 2025, they would only look at your December earnings, and you'd be subject to a monthly limit of about $1,862. Your January-November earnings would not affect your benefits at all, even if you earned $100,000 before December. However - important note - you must be truly "retired" which means no longer performing substantial services in your job. For wage earners, this means you've ended your employment relationship. For self-employed, it means working less than 45 hours per month in your business.

Wait isn't the earnings limit going up for 2025? I thought I saw somewhere it was going to be more than $22,340?

dont forget they also look at how many months before u reach FRA... the earnings limit is different in the year u reach full retirement age too