Will Social Security recover earnings limit overpayment from my monthly SS check or my paycheck too?

The SSA will only recover the overpayment by reducing or withholding your monthly SS benefits - they won't touch your work earnings directly. When you exceed the annual earnings limit (which is $21,240 for 2025 if you're under FRA the whole year), they'll withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above that limit. Since you're expecting to earn about $22,000, you're only about $760 over the limit, so they'll withhold approximately $380 from your future benefits. Typically they'll send you a notice before making any adjustments. You can also request a payment plan if the withholding would cause financial hardship.

I WENT THROUGH THIS NIGHTMARE LAST YEAR!!! They didn't just reduce my benefits, they COMPLETELY STOPPED them for two months!!! No warning at all!!! Then I had to wait another 3 weeks for them to turn them back on!!! The system is BROKEN and they don't care at all that people need money to live!!! Make sure you call them ASAP (ha good luck getting through) and set up a payment plan BEFORE they just shut everything off!!!!!

What happens depends on how much you exceed the earnings limit. Since you're only going slightly over by about $760, you'll only owe back about $380. But be careful - if your income ends up being higher than $22,000, the overpayment will increase. The recovery process works like this: 1. SSA will send you a notice about the overpayment 2. They'll propose to withhold your full benefits until the amount is recovered 3. You can request a lower withholding rate if it would cause hardship 4. They cannot take money from your paycheck - only from your SS benefits One thing to keep in mind - this is different from the yearly earnings test. In the year you reach your Full Retirement Age, the earnings limit is much higher ($56,520 for 2025) and they only withhold $1 for every $3 over the limit. And once you reach FRA, there's no earnings limit at all.

I've been through this a few times, and I've found a better way to handle it. When I realized I was going to exceed the earnings limit, I got tired of trying to call SSA (impossible to get through). I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual SSA agent in about 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent helped me set up a payment plan BEFORE I got hit with the overpayment. This way, instead of having my benefits completely stopped, they just reduced them by about 25% each month until it was paid back. Much easier to budget for! You can negotiate the monthly withholding amount if you explain your financial situation.

my uncle had this happen and they took his whole check for like 2 months but my neighbor said they only took half of hers so maybe it depends on how much u owe? good luck getting through to them tho lol

i think ur confused about how ss works. the earnings limit is for the ssa benefits not for taxes. the ssa can only take money from ur ss checks not ur regular job. but dont forget the irs will still tax u on both ur ss and work income thats different

To answer your follow-up question - yes, you can absolutely request a partial withholding instead of having them take your entire check. When you receive the overpayment notice, there will be information about how to request a payment plan. You can also be proactive and contact them now. The key form is SSA-634 (Request for Change in Overpayment Recovery Rate). On this form, you'll provide information about your income, expenses, and assets, and propose a monthly amount you can afford to repay. As long as your request is reasonable based on your financial situation, they'll typically approve it. Since your overpayment will be relatively small (around $380 based on your estimates), you could propose paying it back over 2-3 months instead of all at once.

Thank you all for the helpful information! I've learned that: 1. SSA will only recover the money from my SS benefits, not my work paycheck (huge relief) 2. I need to be proactive and contact them to set up a payment plan 3. I can request a partial withholding using form SSA-634 4. I should prepare for potential tax implications on both income sources I'm going to try that Claimyr service to get through to an agent since calling directly hasn't worked. I'll update once I get this resolved. Really appreciate everyone's advice!

Just wanted to add - make sure you keep detailed records of all your work earnings throughout the year. SSA will ask for documentation like pay stubs or a statement from your employer when they review your case. Since you're working for your grandson's business, get him to provide you with regular pay stubs or at least keep a written record of what you earn each month. This will make the whole process smoother when you do get through to them. Also, don't forget that the earnings limit is based on gross wages before taxes, not your take-home pay, so make sure you're calculating it correctly!

I just wanted to share my experience since I went through something similar last year. When I exceeded the earnings limit by about $2,000, SSA sent me a notice about 3 months after my tax year ended. They initially wanted to withhold my entire monthly benefit ($1,650) until the overpayment was recovered, but I immediately called and requested a payment plan. Even though it took forever to get through, they were actually pretty reasonable once I explained my situation. They let me pay back $200 per month instead of losing my whole check. The key is to respond to their notice right away - don't ignore it or they'll just start withholding automatically. Also, keep in mind that any benefits they withhold due to the earnings test will be restored when you reach full retirement age, so it's not permanently lost money, just temporarily withheld. Good luck getting through to them!

One thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet - if you're working for your grandson's landscaping business, make sure he's properly reporting your wages to SSA. Sometimes family businesses get casual about payroll reporting, but SSA needs accurate wage records to calculate your earnings test correctly. If there are discrepancies between what you report and what your employer reports, it can delay the whole process and create more complications. Also, since landscaping work can be seasonal, you might want to consider spreading your earnings more evenly throughout the year if possible, or even stopping work temporarily once you hit the limit to avoid the overpayment altogether. Just another option to consider!