Retired US citizens get a lot of help from Social Security. That is why, it is important to know certain rules about these benefits to make the best out of it. While most people are aware of some common rules like 62 years being the minimum age to claim social security retirement benefits, there are some other rules as well, knowing which would help one make informed decisions.
One rule that most people don’t know is that social security gives you the chance to reverse an early claim. However, the chance is given only once and one has to return every single penny they had received during that period. The timeline for the application is 12 months as during these months one can apply for the withdrawal of their claim. While this might not be financially possible for everyone, those who can do it might make themselves eligible for better and higher benefits by filing their claims later.
People can also be eligible for social security benefits of their spouses even without a long working history of their own, given that the spouse has already filed for the social security money. This rule allows one to claim up to 50% benefits of their spouses. However, applying before one’s full retirement age will lead to reduced benefits.
Another thing to keep in mind is that while it is legal to earn while receiving social security benefits, for people who file before reaching their full retirement age, their earnings can reduce the amount of benefits they receive. As reported by EurWeb “For 2025, earning more than $23,400 will cause Social Security to withhold $1 for every $2 over that limit. If you’re reaching full retirement age that year, the cap increases to $62,160, and the penalty drops to $1 for every $3 earned beyond that.”
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Therefore, it is important to keep these lesser known rules in mind before applying for social security benefits to make the best out of it. One should also try to earn more during their professional life as having a higher income before filing for social security results in getting more monetary benefits.
Another thing to keep in mind is that presently, a lot of retired Americans are facing the danger of being scammed by social security scammers. These people call or email pretending to be from the SSA and tell the retired people that they have been overpaid and must pay back that extra amount immediately.
It is important to remember that no federal agency would call and demand money from the citizens. Even for people who have been overpaid, a process would be followed to get that money back from them and that does not involve calling them randomly asking for money and their personal information like social security number or bank account details.
