Social Security reduced my benefit despite starting at FRA (full retirement age) - birthday month confusion?

There's actually a rule about this! When your birthday is on the 1st of the month, Social Security treats you as if you reached that age the month BEFORE. So you actually reached FRA in January, not February according to SSA rules. Check your paperwork - they probably started your benefits in January, which is why you got the slightly reduced amount.

The previous commenter is correct. This is a quirk in Social Security regulations that confuses many people. SSA's rules state that if you're born on the 1st of any month, you're deemed to attain that age the day before (the last day of the previous month). It's in their Program Operations Manual System (POMS) - section RS 00615.015. The online calculator shows different amounts because it's calculating based on the month you select, but doesn't account for this special birthday rule automatically. Unfortunately, the interface isn't intuitive about this exception.

im in the same boat! my bday is may 1 and i got less than what the online thing showed me too. nobody explains this stuff clearly its like they want us to mess up

SSA ABSOLUTELY HIDES THESE RULES ON PURPOSE!! They have dozens of these little "gotchas" that they never explain clearly. I had almost the exact same issue when I filed last year - the rep I finally talked to acted like I should have known this obscure birthday rule that's buried in some manual somewhere. THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO SHORTCHANGE US!! They save millions by hoping people don't notice these "mistakes."

To address your question about recourse - you could potentially withdraw your application and reapply, but there are strict rules about this too. You must withdraw your application within 12 months of first receiving benefits, and you'd have to repay all benefits received so far. Then you could reapply starting from February. However, I'm not sure it's worth the hassle for a 5% difference, especially since you'd have to pay back several months of benefits before getting new payments. And technically, you did reach FRA in January according to SSA rules, even though it feels unfair.

have u tried calling ssa to see if they can fix it? sometimes if u explain nicely they can help

I had a similar issue last year trying to contact SSA about my benefits calculation. After getting disconnected multiple times, I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual SSA agent in under 5 minutes. It saved me hours of frustration! You can check them out at claimyr.com - they have a video demo of how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU I can't promise they'll fix your benefit amount since it sounds like they're following their own (weird) rules, but at least you can talk to someone and get a clear explanation without the endless hold times.

does this birthday rule apply for disability too? my son is applying for ssdi and his bday is on the 1st too

One small silver lining - since they're considering January your FRA month, you'd be allowed to earn unlimited income starting in January rather than February without affecting your benefits. So at least that part works in your favor!

For anyone else reading this thread who has a birthday on the 1st of the month, here's what to remember when planning your Social Security filing strategy: 1. You're considered to reach any age on the last day of the previous month 2. This affects your Full Retirement Age date 3. This applies to early filing reductions and delayed retirement credits 4. The earnings test exemption also starts a month earlier 5. The online calculator doesn't automatically account for this rule Always double-check with SSA when planning your filing date, especially if you have a 1st-of-month birthday!