Health & Benefits

When you choose to work after you retire, your earnings up to a certain level will have no effect on your Social Security retirement benefits. This is sometimes called the "earnings test." However, earnings that exceed the limit will reduce your benefit amount, as shown in this table.

*Amounts withheld from your benefits due to the earnings test are not permanently lost. Once you reach your full normal retirement age, your monthly benefit will be increased to account for the months your benefits were reduced while you were working before your full retirement age. You will not receive the full increase all at once. It will be spread out over time.

When the Social Security Administration (SSA) figures out how much to deduct from your benefits, it counts only the wages The amount of money that a person is paid for work they do you make from your job or your net profit if you are self-employed. The SSA includes bonuses, commissions, and vacation pay. The SSA does not count pensions, annuities, investment income, interest, Veterans Affairs  (VA) benefits, or other government or military retirement benefits.

Special Earnings Limit Rule: The SSA has a special rule if you file for benefits mid-year and have already earned more than the yearly earnings limit amount. You can receive benefits for any whole month that you earn less than the monthly limit, regardless of your yearly earnings. This rule only applies for one year, usually the first year of retirement.

You can receive Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62. However, your benefits will be reduced if you start receiving them before your full retirement age. Learn more about the full normal retirement age and receiving your Social Security retirement benefits early on the Social Security Administration website.