Social Security earnings limit prorated for mid-year retirement? Earned over annual limit before retiring at 65

That's such a relief! So even though I went over the annual limit before July, that doesn't matter because I wasn't collecting benefits yet? And now I just need to keep my earnings under $1,860 per month for the rest of the year? That should be very doable with just a few hours a week. Thanks for explaining this!

Same thing happened to me! Nobody at the SS office even mentioned there was a first-year rule when I applied. Found out the hard way when they started taking $$ back. Had to fight with them for months to get it fixed. Always get everything in writing!

That's a great point I hadn't considered. I did fully retire (cleaning out my office, retirement party, etc.) and this would be a new consultant role with different responsibilities. I'll make sure everything is properly documented though. I really don't want to mess this up!

Thanks for the reminder. Yes, I'm planning to keep my hours limited until I reach my Full Retirement Age in about 2 years. Then I can work as much as I want without any penalties, which will be nice!

OMG i need this!! been trying to get through to SS for 3 weeks about an overpayment notice. does it really work? i'm so desperate at this point i'd try anything

Yes, it worked for me twice now. Much better than spending all day on hold just to get disconnected. The second time I called, the SSA agent actually explained all the details about the monthly earnings test to me and sent me a letter confirming everything.

That's concerning. Maybe I should call and ask for something in writing about my specific situation before I accept any hours. Better safe than sorry with something this important.

Is this also true for vacation pay? I retired in August but got paid out for unused vacation in September. SS office told me different things each time I called them about whether it counted for earnings test.

Yes, that's extremely helpful! Thank you for laying it out so clearly. I feel much more confident now about taking on a few hours each week without jeopardizing my benefits.

Great question! No, the monthly earnings test is only for your very first year of claiming Social Security benefits. After that first year, you're subject to the annual earnings limit until you reach Full Retirement Age, regardless of when you initially claimed. So if you claim at 62 and want to work part-time at 63, you'd need to stay under the annual limit (around $22,320-$23,000 depending on the year) for the entire calendar year, not monthly limits. The benefit is still reduced by $1 for every $2 over the limit, and you still get credit for withheld benefits when you reach FRA. I'd definitely recommend getting a second opinion from SSA directly since your financial advisor missed such an important detail about the first-year rule!

This is such valuable information! I had no idea that the monthly test was only for the first year. So just to make sure I understand correctly - if someone claims at 62, they get the monthly limit protection for just that first year, and then it switches to the annual limit for ages 63, 64, 65, etc. until they hit their Full Retirement Age? That's actually a pretty significant difference in terms of flexibility. I'm definitely going to call SSA directly to confirm this before making any decisions. It's concerning that financial advisors aren't always up to date on these nuances - makes me wonder what other important details might be getting missed!

This is such valuable information! I had no idea the monthly test was only for the first year. That definitely changes my planning strategy. I was thinking I could claim at 62 and then work part-time indefinitely with monthly limits, but now I understand it switches to annual limits starting in year 2. That makes it much more restrictive if you want to work more than just a few hours. I'm definitely going to call SSA directly to confirm this - clearly I need better advice than what I'm getting from my current advisor. Thanks for the detailed explanation @Lydia Bailey!

This is such valuable information! I had no idea the monthly test was only for the first year. So basically if you claim at 62, you get that monthly buffer for year one, but then years 63, 64, and until FRA it's back to the stricter annual limit. That actually makes early retirement planning much more complex than I realized. I'm definitely going to need to have a serious conversation with my financial advisor about why they didn't know about these rules. Has anyone here found advisors who really understand the Social Security earnings test intricacies, or is it better to just call SSA directly for the most accurate information?

This is such valuable information! I had no idea the monthly test was only for the first year. That actually makes the decision easier for me - if I claim at 62, I'd have the monthly flexibility that first year to ease into part-time work, but then need to be more careful about annual limits going forward. I'm definitely going to call SSA directly to confirm all this before making any decisions. It's pretty concerning that financial advisors aren't always up to date on these specific Social Security rules. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread has been more helpful than hours of internet searching!

This is such valuable information! I had no idea the monthly rule was only for the first year. That changes my planning significantly. I was thinking I could use monthly limits indefinitely, but knowing it switches to annual limits after year one means I need to be much more strategic about timing any consulting work. You're absolutely right about getting a second opinion from SSA - it's concerning that my financial advisor didn't know about the first-year rule. Makes me wonder what else they might be missing! I think I'll use that Claimyr service someone mentioned earlier to get connected to an SSA agent and confirm all the details for my specific situation.

This is exactly the kind of detailed information I was looking for! Thank you @Lydia Bailey for clarifying that the monthly test is truly just for the first year. It s'frustrating that financial advisors sometimes miss these crucial details - makes me wonder what other important SSA rules they might not be aware of. I think I ll'definitely call SSA directly or (try that Claimyr service @Javier Morales mentioned to get) official confirmation before making any decisions. The annual limit approach for subsequent years actually seems more straightforward to track than worrying about monthly calculations. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences in this thread!