How You Can Grow Your Social Security Benefits Beyond Retirement Age
Reading Time: 2 MinutesLast Updated: November 3, 2023
For more and more Americans, reaching retirement age no longer means the end of an active working life. Many people are choosing to work past the age of 65, according to the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
If you’re willing and able, maintaining gainful employment later in life could go a long way toward ensuring a secure future for you and your family. Besides providing you with additional income to pay your bills, extending your employment or working for yourself could boost your lifetime Social Security benefits.
Here’s how:
Whether you’re still working or not, waiting to claim your Social Security retirement benefits could grow them significantly. Through delayed retirement credits, your monthly benefit amount increases for each year you wait between your full retirement age and 70. Full retirement age is between 65 and 67, depending on when you were born. To learn more about delayed retirement credits, please visit our Retirement Benefits page.
You get credits on your earnings record for each year of additional work income. Once you start receiving retirement benefits, we’ll automatically review your earnings record each year to determine if you’re entitled to an adjustment. When we calculate your retirement benefit amount, we use your best 35 years of earnings. We’ll increase your benefit amount if your new year of earnings is higher than one of the years we used to calculate your initial benefit amount. To see how we calculate your benefits, see our publication, Your Retirement Benefit: How It’s Figured.
An increased benefit amount for yourself could mean more support for your family, too, through Social Security spousal benefits, child benefits, and survivor benefits.
We also encourage you to set up your own online my Social Security account so you can verify your lifetime earnings record, check the status of an application for benefits, and manage them after you’re receiving them. You can create your personal my Social Security account today.
Social Security is committed to helping you prepare for a secure today and tomorrow for you, your family, and future family. You can access all of our retirement resources on our Retirement Benefits page.
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Tags: my Social Security, my Social Security account, retirement, retirement benefits, Social Security benefits, SSA, survivors benefits
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Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
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Emerita P.
I started collecting my sss money when I turned 66. I continue to work up to now 30 hours a week. Would I get more money beginning next year?
Larry T.
I,am currently drawing social security. I, have a lot of bills to pay.My taxes ,on my home exceeds,Two thousand, four hundred dollars. I, Do not have a job,
to help me,pay bills,and taxes.I, live in Denton County
if I DO NOT HAVE THE TAX MONEY,by January,I
will lose my home.
Armelia S.
In Jan 2015 when I turned 66 I applied for delayed social security instead taking spousal social security. In Jan 2019 I turn 70 and need to know how and when to cancel the spousal support & apply for my full social security benefits.
A.C.
Hi, Armelia. You can schedule an appointment with your local office by calling us at 1-800-772-1213 between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and a representative will assist you. In most cases, you can handle your business by phone. We hope this helps.
Marilin S.
I believe I have credit on earnings for 2017. Can you tell me when I will receive the “one-time payment” like I have received in the past and approximately how much it will be? Thank you.
Nancy H.
Teenage daughter wants to work. How much can she earn without the parent losing her social security check?
Kevin B.
I can’t seem to get a straight answer about delayed retirement credits. I signed up for Social Security at the Brea, CA Social Security office and received a spreadsheet indicating the amount of my DRC without any indication that the information was from Social Security office. Thereafter I received a Retirement, Survivors and Disability Insurance letter from the SSA indicating the monthly amount I will be paid is the amount I would have received at my full retirement age of 66 even though I waited to age 67 to apply. There is no indicator on this letter about the DRC but there is a very explicit statement indicating that I have only 60 days to dispute the lesser amount indicated on the letter or I am out of luck. I returned to my social security office but was only given a post-it note that refers to RS00615.690 Delayed Retirement Credits. Nothing is definitive on the Social Security web site about this policy.
My only recourse I can see is to file a Request for Reconsideration form SSA-561-U2 so I can put this information on file.
This is very disappointing. You would think that the form letter I received would be more definitive but it said nothing about DRC. Can you provide me with a more definitive document so I don’t feel like i will be cheated later by not objecting? I would feel more comfortable if I had a document from SSA about my DRC benefit. Thank you
R.F.
We are sorry for any inconveniences, Kevin. Unfortunately, and because of security reasons we do not have access to personal records in this blog and cannot provide the assistance you need in your situation. One of our representatives should be able to provide you with an explanation.
You have the right to file an appeal (Request for Reconsideration), if you have any doubts or disagreements on your established benefit amount, if in case you wish to seek legal advice to verify our decision.
Please call our toll free number at 1-800-772-1213 for assistance. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Generally, you will have a shorter wait time if you call later during the day or later in the week. Thanks.
geraldine p.
I work and receive a Social Security Check. I am 70 years old. My account say I will have to pay back $1.00 of my Social Security Check for every $3.00 I earn. I though that I could earn as much as I wanted after age 66. What is the truth.
R.F.
Great question Geraldine, if you were born January 2, 1943, through January 1, 1955, then your full retirement age for retirement insurance benefits is 66.
If you work and are full retirement age or older, the amount you make at work will not affect your Social Security benefits, no matter how much you earn. You can get your benefits with no limit on your earnings.
Please read our publication “How Work Affects Your Benefits” for more information. Thanks!
Judy H.
If I work until age 75, and wait to collect SS benefits until I am 75, will my benefits be more than if I collect benefits at age 70, and retire at age 70? Is the annual income earned between age 70-75 calculated into the benefit amount I could receive at age 75?
R.F.
Hello Judy, Social Security retirement benefits are increased by a certain percentage (depending on date of birth) if you delay your retirement beyond full retirement age. The benefit increase no longer applies when you reach age 70, even if you continue to delay taking benefits.
See Delayed Retirement Credits for more information.
Each year we review the records for all working Social Security recipients. If your earnings for the prior year are higher than one of the years we used to compute your retirement benefit, we will recalculate your benefit amount. If an increase is due, a new monthly benefit amount is established on your record automatically. We hope this information helps!
B
Is there a limit on income earned prior to retiring the year I start drawing benefits?
V.V.
If under your full retirement age, there are earnings limits. If you’re retiring in the middle of the year and you have already earned more than the yearly limit ($17,040 in 2018), there is a special rule that applies to earnings for one year. Under this rule, you can get a Social Security benefit for any whole month that you are “retired” and earning $1,420 or less. You can use our earnings test calculator to see how your earnings could affect your benefit payments and check out our Getting Benefits While Working web page.
Kathy P.
Is my retirement amount based on how much I made? Or based on the years where I made the most money?
V.V.
Hi Kathy, thank you for the question. A Social Security retirement benefit is calculated by using your highest 35 years of earnings. If you do not have 35 years of earnings, we will use all of the earnings on your record and factor in an annual total of $0.00 earnings for each of the remaining years.
Social Security has an online calculator called a Retirement Estimator that provides immediate retirement benefit estimates based on your actual Social Security earnings record. Plus, it also allows you to create “what if” scenarios. You can, for example, change your “stop work” dates or expected future earnings to create and compare different retirement alternatives.
See our Benefits Planner: Retirement web page for more on obtaining benefit estimates.