Social Security earnings limit confusion - monthly vs annual limit before reaching FRA in June 2025
I'm really confused about how the earnings limit works in the year I reach my Full Retirement Age (FRA). I'll hit my FRA in June 2025, and I'm trying to figure out if I can earn more than the monthly limit before June. Does the higher annual earnings limit for FRA year apply to my entire 2025 income, or do I have to stick to the monthly limits until I actually reach my FRA in June? My financial advisor gave me conflicting information, and I need to plan my work schedule for next year. I'm worried about having my benefits reduced if I make a mistake here.
20 comments
Join the conversation
DeShawn Washington
You're in luck! In your FRA year (2025), the higher annual earnings limit applies to your earnings for the entire year BEFORE you reach FRA. However, they only count earnings in months BEFORE you reach your FRA. So in 2025, if you earn $80,000 from January through May, but $0 from June through December, SSA would only count that $80,000 against the higher annual limit for your FRA year. Once you reach FRA in June, you can earn unlimited amounts with no penalty whatsoever.
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•Thank you so much! Just to make sure I understand correctly - in the months before I reach FRA (January through May 2025), I'm still limited to the higher annual threshold, not the lower monthly one that applies to people who aren't in their FRA year? I want to make absolutely sure I'm not going to trigger any benefit reductions.
0 coins
Mei-Ling Chen
i had this same issue last year. they use the ANNUAL limit in your FRA year, but only count earnings before your birthday month. once you hit FRA month no limits at all!! so if ur FRA is june, they check jan-may earnings against the higher yearly limit. june onwards = earn whatever you want
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•That's such a relief! So from January through May, I'm judged against the higher annual limit (even though I haven't hit FRA yet), and then from June onward no limits at all. Thank you for sharing your experience!
0 coins
Sofía Rodríguez
WRONG INFORMATION ABOVE!! My husband got hit with a HUGE overpayment because of this exact mistake! The MONTHLY limit applies until you hit your FRA month, then the limits go away completely. SSA doesn't use the higher annual limit until the actual month you reach FRA. PLEASE double-check this with SSA directly or you'll regret it!!!!
0 coins
DeShawn Washington
•I understand your concerns, but I want to clarify the official SSA policy. In the year a person reaches FRA, SSA applies a higher annual earnings test limit to earnings in months BEFORE reaching FRA. This is different from the lower annual limit that applies to years before your FRA year. This is clearly stated on the SSA website under the earnings test rules. Perhaps your husband's situation involved other factors?
0 coins
Aiden O'Connor
This stuff is so confusing! I thought once you file for Social Security you can't work at all or they take away your benefits? That's what my uncle told me anyway.
0 coins
Zoe Papadopoulos
•Your uncle was misinformed. You can absolutely work while receiving Social Security benefits, but there are earnings limits that apply if you're under Full Retirement Age. In 2025, if you're under FRA for the entire year, $1 in benefits is withheld for every $2 earned above $22,625 (estimate based on current limits plus COLA). In the year you reach FRA, $1 is withheld for every $3 earned above $60,000 (approximate) in months before reaching FRA. After FRA, no earnings limits apply.
0 coins
Jamal Brown
I had the EXACT same situation when I reached my FRA in April last year. Trust me, during your FRA year, the ANNUAL limit applies to your pre-FRA months, not the monthly limit. So for Jan-May 2025, your earnings will be counted against the higher annual threshold (around $60K per year currently, will be higher with COLA by 2025). Then from June onward, no earnings limits whatsoever! I worked with a benefits planner at my local SSA office who confirmed this.
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•Thank you for sharing your experience! Did you have to report your earnings in any special way during your FRA year? I'm wondering if I need to notify SSA about my work plans or just let them figure it out through normal income reporting.
0 coins
Fatima Al-Rashid
If you're still trying to reach SSA to confirm this, good luck getting anyone on the phone these days! I spent THREE DAYS trying to get through last month about my own earnings limit question. After endless busy signals and disconnections, I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in under 10 minutes. Check out their video here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU or visit claimyr.com. Seriously, it saved me so much frustration. The agent confirmed what others here are saying - in your FRA year, the higher annual limit applies to months before you reach FRA.
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•Thanks for the tip! I've been dreading calling them because of the wait times. I'll check out that service if I need to confirm anything else. Glad to hear the agent confirmed the same information about the earnings limit.
0 coins
Jamal Brown
To answer your follow-up question about reporting - you don't need to proactively report your earnings to SSA. Your employer will report your wages through normal W-2 processes, or if you're self-employed, your earnings will be reported through your tax return. However, if you expect to exceed the earnings limit, it's a good idea to notify SSA so they can adjust your benefits proactively rather than creating an overpayment situation that needs to be repaid later.
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•That's really helpful advice. I think I'll contact them early in the year to let them know my expected earnings. Better to have them adjust things upfront than deal with an overpayment notice later.
0 coins
Aiden O'Connor
wait so is it different for SSI vs regular Social Security??? i get confused about which program has what rules
0 coins
DeShawn Washington
•Yes, the rules are completely different for SSI versus regular Social Security retirement benefits. SSI has much stricter income and resource limits that apply no matter your age, while regular Social Security retirement benefits only have earnings limits until you reach your Full Retirement Age. The conversation in this thread is about retirement benefits, not SSI.
0 coins
Zoe Papadopoulos
Here's a simplified explanation of your situation: 1. January-May 2025 (before FRA): Higher annual earnings limit applies (approximately $60,000 adjusted for 2025 COLA) 2. June 2025 and beyond (FRA attained): No earnings limits whatsoever The monthly earnings limit only applies in a non-FRA year when you have a "grace year" - the first year you retire and claim benefits mid-year. This is often confused with FRA rules. For official verification, see SSA's page on Special Earnings Limit Rule: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/rule.html
0 coins
Lena Kowalski
•Thank you for this clear breakdown! This makes perfect sense now. I appreciate you citing the official SSA page too - I'll take a look at that for more details.
0 coins
Sophia Rodriguez
Just wanted to add one more important point that hasn't been mentioned yet - make sure you understand how the earnings test calculation works in practice. SSA looks at your ANNUAL earnings for the months before FRA, but they deduct benefits on a monthly basis if you exceed the limit. So if you earn $70,000 from January through May 2025 (exceeding the ~$60K limit), they'll withhold $1 for every $3 over the limit, but they spread that withholding across the remaining months of the year. It's not like they take a lump sum - they adjust your monthly benefit payments. This might affect your cash flow planning even though you'll be within your rights to earn that much.
0 coins
Aisha Rahman
•That's a really important point about the monthly withholding process! I hadn't thought about the cash flow implications. So even though I'm allowed to earn more in my FRA year, if I do exceed the limit in those pre-FRA months, SSA will still reduce my monthly benefit payments for the rest of 2025 to recover the "overage"? That could definitely impact my budget planning. Do you know if there's a way to estimate how much they would withhold per month, or do I need to contact SSA directly for that calculation?
0 coins