Social Security earnings limit confusion - will my November payment be affected if I go over the monthly limit after starting at 62?
Just applied for early retirement benefits at 62 (my FRA is 67) and I'm super confused about the earnings limit! I start receiving benefits in November with my first check coming in December. My situation is I might go over the monthly earnings limit JUST in November because of a year-end bonus. Will they withhold my entire first check? How does that even work if I haven't gotten any benefits yet to withhold from? The SSA rep I talked to gave me a confusing explanation about grace months that I didn't understand. Anyone dealt with this before? I'm making about $1,850/month normally from part-time work, but the bonus would push November to around $3,500.
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CosmicCowboy
You need to understand how the earnings test works when starting benefits mid-year. Since you're starting in November, SSA applies a monthly earnings test rather than the annual one for the remainder of 2025. For 2025, the monthly limit is about $1,810 for someone under FRA. If your regular income is $1,850, you're already slightly over the monthly limit even without the bonus. When you exceed the limit, SSA withholds $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above the limit. So yes, your November payment could be reduced or completely withheld depending on how much you go over.
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Paolo Longo
•Thanks for explaining! So does that mean they'll just reduce my November check? Or will they take the entire thing? I'm worried because I was counting on that money for Christmas gifts.
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Amina Diallo
happened 2 me last yr. they took my whole check but it not as bad as it seems. u get it back eventually when u reach full retirement age.
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Paolo Longo
•They took your WHOLE check? Ugh, that's what I was afraid of. What do you mean I'll get it back at FRA? That's 5 years away for me!
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Oliver Schulz
I thought the earnings limit was annual not monthly? I've been working part time while collecting for 2 years and nobody ever said anything about a monthly limit to me.
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CosmicCowboy
•It's normally annual, but there's a special rule for the first year you retire. In the calendar year you first retire, SSA uses a monthly earnings test for the months after you claim benefits. After that first calendar year, it switches to the annual test.
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Natasha Orlova
The first year rule is a bit complicated. Since you're starting benefits in November 2025, you're subject to the monthly earnings test for November and December. For each month you exceed the limit (about $1,810/month in 2025), you'd lose benefits. Based on your figures, your regular income is slightly over the monthly limit ($1,850 > $1,810) so you'd already lose some benefits. With your bonus pushing November to $3,500, you'd be $1,690 over the limit for that month. This means they'd withhold $845 from your November benefit (that's $1 for every $2 over the limit). If your November benefit is less than $845, they could withhold the entire check. Any remaining amount to be withheld would carry over to your December benefit. Starting January 2026, you'll switch to the annual earnings test, which gives you more flexibility.
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Paolo Longo
•This is EXACTLY what I needed to know! Thank you! So I should probably tell my boss to delay the bonus until January if possible? That way I'd just have my regular income slightly over, rather than losing most of my first check?
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Javier Cruz
THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS A SCAM!!! They FORCE us to take reduced benefits at 62 because we can't survive, then PUNISH us with these stupid earnings limits if we try to SUPPLEMENT our inadequate benefits with part-time work!!! And don't get me started on how they calculate the penalty - it's DESIGNED to confuse us so we can't plan properly!!!
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Amina Diallo
•i feel u! when i went over they didn't even tell me til the check didn't show up. tried calling 4 days straight and couldn't get thru to anyone
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Emma Wilson
If you're worried about contacting SSA to get a clearer explanation, I found a service called Claimyr that got me through to a real SSA agent in under 10 minutes last month when I had an earnings limit issue. I was on hold for literally 2 hours before trying them. Their site is claimyr.com and you can see how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Saved me a massive headache when I needed to understand exactly how my benefit would be affected by a similar situation.
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Paolo Longo
•I've never heard of this service before. Does it really work? I spent 90 minutes on hold yesterday and then got disconnected. Might be worth trying if I can actually talk to someone who can give me a straight answer about my situation.
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Emma Wilson
•Yes, it really worked for me. The SSA rep I got was knowledgeable and helped me understand exactly how the earnings test would affect my specific situation. Much better than trying to figure it out from the website.
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Malik Thomas
Have you considered just asking your employer to push the bonus payment to January? That would solve your problem entirely since you'd be under a different set of rules next year. Just a thought.
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Paolo Longo
•That's actually a great idea! I think my boss would be open to that since it's just a timing issue. Thanks for the suggestion!
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Natasha Orlova
One important clarification: when they withhold benefits due to excess earnings, those withheld benefits aren't lost forever. Once you reach your Full Retirement Age (67 in your case), SSA recalculates your benefit amount and gives you credit for the months when benefits were withheld. This results in a small permanent increase to your monthly benefit starting at FRA.
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Paolo Longo
•That's good to know! Though I'd rather have the money now than a small increase 5 years from now. I'll definitely see if I can get that bonus pushed to January.
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Oliver Schulz
My sister's friend works for social security and she says they don't actually check the monthly limits for most people unless you report it or your employer does. Not telling you to hide anything just saying what I heard.
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CosmicCowboy
•This is dangerous advice. SSA receives earnings information from the IRS. If they discover you've exceeded the earnings limit and didn't report it, they can assess overpayments later, which you'll have to pay back with potential penalties. Always report your earnings changes to SSA.
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Amina Diallo
if ur working anyway have u thought bout just waiting til FRA to collect? no earnings limit then and bigger checks.
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Paolo Longo
•I've thought about it, but I only work part-time now and really need the extra income from SS. Just trying to balance everything as best I can until I fully retire in a couple years.
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AstroAce
Just wanted to add another perspective here - I went through something similar last year when I started benefits at 62. The key thing to remember is that SSA uses your GROSS monthly earnings, not net. So if your bonus includes any overtime, commission, or other earnings, make sure you're calculating based on the full amount. Also, if you do decide to ask your employer to delay the bonus to January, get it in writing so there's no confusion about when it was actually earned vs. when it was paid. SSA looks at when compensation is earned, not when you receive it. The monthly test for your first year really is strict - I learned that the hard way when I had an unexpected freelance payment in my second month of benefits.
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Charlotte Jones
•Great point about the gross vs net earnings! I hadn't thought about that distinction. My bonus is definitely gross pay so I need to factor that in correctly. And you're absolutely right about getting the delay in writing - I work for a small company and sometimes these verbal agreements get forgotten. Quick question though - when you say SSA looks at when compensation is "earned" vs "paid," does that mean if I earn the bonus in November but they pay it in January, SSA would still count it for November? That would defeat the whole purpose of delaying it.
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Carter Holmes
•Actually, it depends on your employment situation. For W-2 employees, SSA typically counts wages when they're paid, not when they're earned. So if you can get your employer to pay the bonus in January instead of November, it would count toward 2026 earnings when you're under the annual test instead of the monthly test. But for self-employment income, it's counted when earned regardless of when paid. Since you mentioned working part-time for an employer, you're likely a W-2 employee, so timing the payment to January should work in your favor. Just make sure your employer understands you want it paid in January, not just deferred.
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