Retirement

How You Can Grow Your Social Security Benefits Beyond Retirement Age

November 30, 2017 • By

Reading Time: 2 Minutes

Last Updated: November 3, 2023

man and woman outside on laptop 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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About the Author

Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications

Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications

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Comments

  1. Bill H.

    I have CP and applied for disability this year My fiancé and I have planned to get married in Sept 2018, Will my wife, after our marriage will get spousal benefits then?

    • Ray F.

      Hello Bill, your wife may be able to get benefits if she is at least 62 years of age and you are receiving or eligible for retirement or disability benefits.
      See: Benefits For Your Spouse for more information.

  2. John T.

    My wife was given some confusing information when she applied for her/my spousal benefits and in doing so she was given a lower amount to draw from my SS she is not receiving her fair share of her/my benefits. Can an addendum be filed once she has received her benefits?
    jt

    • Ray F.

      Thank you for contacting us, John. If your wife does not agree with our determination, she has the right to file an appeal. However, the request must be in writing and received within 60 days of the date she receive her award letter. If she is out of the 60 days time-frame, she would have to submit a request for us to review her claim. She can write us or send us an email message. We hope this information helps!

      • Linda S.

        Will my ss retirement benefits continue to grow if I’m collecting off of my husband’s disability now? I signed up at 66 (dob=1951)& opted to collect off of his if it was available & it was. So does this mean if I decide to quit work next year will my ss be paid to me at the 68 yr old rate?

  3. George M.

    will my SS benefits always be taxed or is there an age that they will stop being taxed?

    • Ray F.

      Thank you for your question, George. Some people have to pay federal income taxes on their Social Security benefits. This usually happens only if you have other substantial income (such as wages, self-employment, interest, dividends and other taxable income that must be reported on your tax return) in addition to your benefits.
      For further income tax questions, you will need to contact the IRS. Their toll-free number is 1-800-829-1040.

  4. George M.

    Is there an age that my SS benefits will not be taxed? I will be 70 next week but I am still working full time.
    TY!!

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  6. edna n.

    I started collecting s.s. at age 62 related to serious asthma. As a result my ss income is very low. Is there any way to increase the amy I now receive? I get a very sm amt from my ex husband’s ss.

    • Ray F.

      Thank you for your question, Edna. If a person begins to receive benefits at age 62 or prior to their full retirement age, their benefits are reduced. The reduction factors are permanently applied to all of the benefits the person may qualify for.
      Please call our toll free number at 1-800-772-1213 for additional assistance. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Thanks.

  7. Yugank K.

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  8. S T.

    Ray Fernandez, Can you find and post the answer to my question about whether it is possible to suspend benefits at Full Retirement Age when SSDI would normally switch to retirement benefits, then resume benefits later at a higher benefit amount.

    • Ray F.

      If you have reached full retirement age, but are not yet age 70, you can ask us to suspend retirement benefit payments. You may voluntarily suspend retirement benefit payments up to age 70 beginning with the month after the month when you make the request. See our Retirement Planner: Suspending Retirement Benefit Payments web page for more information on this topic. Thanks!

  9. Alan T.

    I am 71 years of age and receiving retirement benefits.I am self employed and have continued working so far and would like to continue to do so.I have less than 35 years of contributions ,will my benefits be automatically recalculated and increased if I continue working.I am getting contradictory information on this ,some say that no increase is possible after age 70

    • Ray F.

      Thank you for your question, Alan. Generally, you will need to have 40 credits, or 10 years of work paying Social Security taxes, to qualify for any type of Social Security benefit.
      When you apply for retirement benefits, we base your benefit payment on your highest 35 years of earnings and your age when you start receiving benefits.
      You may be referring to Social Security retirement benefits increasing, by a certain percentage (depending on date of birth), if you delay your retirement beyond your full retirement age. However, the benefit increase no longer applies when you reach age 70, even if you continue to delay taking benefits.
      See our Retirement Planning page for more information. We hope this information helps!

      • Alan T.

        Thank you for your response, but think I was not clear enough in my question.I have at least 40 credits from a 29 year work history of paying Social Security taxes.I was not referring to Delayed Retirement Credit (DRC),I did delay my retirement until 70 and have been collecting retirement benifit since my 70th birthday with the full DRC applied.My question is rather, if I continue to work for the next few years into my mid seventies, whilst I am able and wanting to continue working, will there be an automatic recomputation of my average indexed monthly earning (AIME) at the end of each year that I work and consequently an increase in my monthly benefit if the AIME is deemed to have increased.

        • Ray F.

          Thank you for your questions Alan. The amount of benefits you receive is established at the time you applied for retirement benefits. It is based on the amount of your average lifetime earnings and your age at the time you applied.
          Each year, we review the records for all working Social Security recipients to see if additional earnings may increase monthly benefits. If your earnings for the prior year are higher than any of the years that were 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!
          See “Your Retirement Benefit: How It’s Figured” for more information.

          • Alan T.

            Yes, that answers my question.Thank you kindly.

  10. Mike

    If I signed up for SS when I reached 65 but delayed receiving any payments, do I have do anything when I reach 70 to start receiving my payments or is it automatic?

    • Ray F.

      Hi Mike! If you signed up for Medicare ONLY at age 65, you will have to apply for your retirement benefits at age 70. Keep in mind, the benefit increase no longer applies when you reach age 70, even if you continue to delay taking benefits.
      Please call our toll free number at 1-800-772-1213 for further assistance. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Thanks.

Comments are closed.