Working after FRA - Will part-time income lower my Social Security benefit at 67?

Good news! Since you're already at your FRA (67), you can earn as much as you want without any reduction in your Social Security benefits. That's why they likely asked - because the rules are different depending on whether you're under or at/over FRA. When you work and pay Social Security taxes, SSA reviews your earnings record every year. If your recent earnings are higher than one of the 35 years used to calculate your benefit, they'll automatically recalculate and increase your benefit amount. But they NEVER reduce your benefit if you have lower earnings. So your answers: 1. They asked because it affects benefits if you're under FRA 2. No, lower earnings now cannot decrease your payment 3. Yes! If these earnings replace a lower-earning year or a zero in your top 35, you could see a small increase 4. You will pay income taxes on the new earnings and possibly more of your SS benefits might become taxable depending on your combined income You're in the sweet spot - enjoy the work without worrying about SS reductions!

Be careful!!! The SSA is NOTORIOUS for miscalculating benefits when people work after claiming. While it's TRUE there's no earnings limit after FRA, they sometimes mistakenly apply the limit anyway!!! I had this happen and my payments were wrongly reduced for 4 MONTHS before they fixed it. Also - watch out for your INCOME TAX situation. Working could push more of your SS benefits into taxable territory (up to 85% can be taxed). For some people this is a HUGE issue!! Make SURE you keep excellent records of all your work and earnings, because if they make a mistake, YOU need to prove it to them!

Quick add to what others said - if you're under 70, continuing to work can potentially increase your benefit through something called recomputation. Every year, SSA looks at your earnings. If current year's earnings are higher than your lowest indexed year used in your original calculation, they'll substitute the higher amount and recalculate. The increase is usually small, but it's automatic - you don't need to do anything. Sometimes worth it if you're replacing a zero or very low earning year in your record.

congrats on the job opportunity! i started working part time at 68 myself, just for something to do honestly. never saw any problem with my ss checks, they kept coming same as always. the tax thing others mentioned is real tho - i did end up paying a bit more come tax time. but the extra income more than made up for it!

Since you're at FRA, working won't reduce your benefits. The SSA rep likely asked because it affects benefit calculations differently depending on your situation: 1. If you're under FRA: Working can reduce benefits due to earnings limits 2. At FRA or older: No reduction regardless of earnings Regarding your specific questions: 1. This is a standard question to determine if earnings limits apply 2. New earnings cannot lower your existing benefit amount 3. Yes, working could increase your benefit through recomputation if current earnings replace a lower year 4. Consider potential impacts on taxation of benefits and possible Medicare IRMAA adjustments The most significant consideration is typically tax-related, as working could increase the portion of your Social Security benefits subject to income tax.

Had a similar situation last year. Calling the SSA directly about this was a NIGHTMARE. Spent 3 hours on hold one day and got disconnected, then 2.5 hours the next day before talking to someone who gave me conflicting info. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an SSA agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent confirmed that working after FRA has no negative impact on benefits and could potentially increase them slightly if I had a low-earning year in my calculation. Worth the call just for peace of mind.

my mom works part time after starting SS and she gets to keep all her money. they only reduce benefits if ur younger than full retirement age i think? but be careful about taxes cause they might tax more of ur SS if u make too much money from working

One thing nobody's mentioned yet - your continued work might increase your benefit at 70, but not in the way you might be thinking. There's no special increase at 70 based on work. However, if between 67-70 your new earnings replace a lower year in your calculation, you'd see some increase. This happens whenever SSA does their annual recomputation, not specifically at age 70. There's also delayed retirement credits if you had suspended your benefits (8% per year), but since you're already collecting, that's not applicable here.