Will irregular earnings from acting gigs affect my reduced Social Security spousal benefits at 64?
I'm trying to figure out how to handle my Social Security situation with my inconsistent income. I'm 64.5 years old and considering taking my SS benefits with the spousal top-up since my husband reaches his FRA next month and plans to file in March. I understand I'll face a reduction for claiming before my FRA, but we need the extra income now with our youngest still in college. My main concern is about the earnings limit (around $23,000/year from what I understand). I work part-time at a community theater, but I also occasionally book acting jobs in commercials or small TV roles. These gigs are completely unpredictable - I might get a $3,500 check one month and then nothing for the next 3-4 months. I'm almost certain my annual income won't exceed the yearly limit, but I'm worried that if SSA sees one larger monthly payment, they'll start withholding my benefits automatically. Does anyone know how SSA handles irregular income like this? Do they look at monthly earnings or just the annual total? I don't want to have benefits withheld unnecessarily just because my income comes in irregular chunks rather than steady payments.
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Ava Rodriguez
SSA only cares about your ANNUAL earnings, not monthly fluctuations. They evaluate this at tax time when they see your W-2s and Schedule C forms. As long as you stay under the annual earnings limit ($23,660 for 2025 if you're under FRA the whole year), you're fine regardless of how that income is distributed throughout the year. However, there is one important thing to know - if this is your first year collecting benefits, they apply a monthly earnings test rather than annual. So in the first year, you can't earn more than $1,970/month in any month you receive benefits. After that first calendar year, they switch to the annual test. Also, remember that if you do exceed the limit, they don't withhold dollar-for-dollar. They withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 you earn above the limit. And they'll resume full payments once you reach your FRA regardless of earnings.
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Dmitry Popov
•Thank you so much for this explanation! That monthly test in the first year is exactly what I needed to know about. So if I start benefits in April 2025, and then get a $3,500 acting gig in June, I'd be over the monthly limit just for June? Would they withhold my entire June payment or just a portion? I'm trying to plan our budget carefully since my daughter's tuition is due in August.
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Miguel Ortiz
my wife had same issue with waitressing (big tips some months nothing others) and ssa never bothered us about it. they just check your total at end of year.
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Dmitry Popov
•That's reassuring to hear! Did she ever have to report her monthly income to them at all, or do they just check at tax time?
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Miguel Ortiz
•never had to report monthly. they just looked at her w2 at end of year.
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Zainab Khalil
YOU NEED TO REPORT ANY MONTH YOU GO OVER!!!! I had this EXACT situation and got hit with a $4,200 overpayment notice because I didn't know about the monthly rule in first year!!! They don't tell you this stuff until AFTER they demand money back! The person above is right about the monthly test in first year - I learned the hard way. Also be careful because they count GROSS earnings not NET so even if you have expenses for your acting jobs those don't count as deductions for the earnings test!
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QuantumQuest
•This is accurate. During your first year receiving benefits, SSA applies what's called the Monthly Earnings Test rather than the Annual Earnings Test. If you earn over the monthly limit in any month during that first year, you won't receive benefits for that specific month regardless of your total annual earnings. You should proactively report months where you expect to exceed the monthly limit by calling SSA or using the mobile wage reporting app. This prevents potential overpayments that would need to be repaid later. After your first calendar year on benefits, they'll switch to the annual test where only your total yearly earnings matter, not the monthly distribution of those earnings.
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Connor Murphy
Has anyone actually managed to get through to a real SSA person on the phone to ask these kinds of questions? I've been trying for weeks and either get disconnected or told the wait is over 2 hours. I have a similar question about irregular income and can't get an answer!
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Yara Haddad
•I was in the same boat trying to reach SSA about my husband's disability review. After days of failed attempts, I tried a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an SSA agent within 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU It was worth it to finally talk to an actual person who could answer my specific questions about how they evaluate income for SSDI versus retirement benefits. The agent explained exactly how they handle irregular income reporting both for the initial year and ongoing years.
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Keisha Robinson
Just wanted to mention that you should also consider whether its really worth taking benefits early at all. The reduction is permanent and your spousal top-up will be reduced too. Have you looked at your break-even point? Might be better to just pull from savings for college if possible.
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Dmitry Popov
•We've definitely considered waiting, but our savings took a hit with medical expenses last year. My husband will be taking his full benefit at FRA, and we calculated that I'd need to live past 83 to break even if I waited until my FRA (which is 67). Given my family history, that's not a sure bet. We figured the guaranteed income now for college expenses made more sense than possibly higher income later.
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Ava Rodriguez
•That's a reasonable approach. Too many advisors push the "always wait" strategy without considering individual circumstances. The monthly test in your first year is the main thing to watch for with your acting income, but after that calendar year, those larger intermittent payments won't cause any issues as long as your annual total stays under the limit.
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QuantumQuest
One important point that hasn't been mentioned: self-employment income (which most acting gigs would be) is counted when you perform the service, not when you receive payment. This differs from W-2 wages which count when paid. So if you film a commercial in December but don't get paid until January, the income still counts for December's earnings test. Regarding your original question, after your first calendar year receiving benefits, SSA only cares about your total annual earnings, not monthly fluctuations. During the initial year, however, they will withhold benefits for any month you earn over the monthly limit (approximately $1,970 for 2025). If you expect to stay under the annual limit but might have occasional months over the monthly limit in your first year, consider delaying the start of your benefits until January so you immediately transition to the annual test.
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Dmitry Popov
•That's a really smart suggestion about waiting until January! I hadn't thought about that strategic timing aspect. So if I wait until January 2026 to start benefits, I'll immediately be under the annual test rather than monthly? That might be worth the 2-3 month delay to avoid complications with the monthly test.
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QuantumQuest
•Exactly. If you start in January, your entire first year will be evaluated using the annual test rather than the monthly test. This gives you complete flexibility for how your earnings are distributed throughout the year. Given your irregular income pattern, this could save you significant hassle in managing benefit reductions.
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Miguel Ortiz
my cousin tried to track all this and still got messed up. ss is so confusing!!
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