A Real-Life Example of How the Withholding Works
Say you’re 63, collecting $1,500 a month in Social Security, and you pick up a part-time job earning $32,320 for the year. That’s $7,840 over the $24,480 limit. Social Security would withhold half of that overage, $3,920, from your benefits over the course of the year.
Here’s the part most people don’t expect: Social Security doesn’t shave a little off every monthly check. Instead, it withholds entire monthly payments until the required amount is covered. So instead of a slightly smaller check every month, you might simply not receive a payment at all for two or three months while the withholding catches up.
Why This Catches So Many Retirees Off Guard
With full retirement age now permanently set at 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later, there’s a longer window than ever where someone can be collecting Social Security, still healthy enough to work, and still young enough for the earnings test to apply. Many retirees claim benefits at 62 thinking a part-time job is just a bonus on top of their check, only to find out later that Social Security expected a portion of it back.
Timing also plays a bigger role than most people realize. If you turn full retirement age in, say, September 2026, only your earnings from January through August count toward the $65,160 limit. Starting in September, you could earn any amount and Social Security wouldn’t touch your benefit.
Once he turns 67 you do not have to worry about how much money you can make and not be penalized if you were 65 you would get penalized but not 67
I applied for social security on 9/30 26 I wanted my benefits to start in March. I Turn 67 in February of 2027. I received a letter telling me I will start receiving benefits on January of 2027. I work full time making more then the maximin allowed. How will this affect me.
Dear staff I’m writing because I need extra fund to help with my bills because I’m not working how ever, those companies is lack of work right now thanks!
Social security dude, just as much as criminals as the government is. You pay into this system. So when you get to age, now, they change the age. Social security you suck you suck at what you do and then you try to tell the person who’s worked all their lives but they’re only allowed
A certain amount of money while they work. So what happens now? What happens when a person becomes 67 or boy? Just didn’t quite make it to 70 Cos. That’s what you’re really counting on. You counting on them not to make 70. So you can keep the money that they put into the social security to me. Social security is a big hoax. You grow up all your life thinking. Social security, it’s gonna be there at the end, but they’re not there to be there. At the end, they let the politicians take all the money that was there. And don’t even put the money back and then I got the nerve to tell the citizen we, the people that we don’t have a right. So if that, if I’d see this correctly, how is it that you have all the rights because the law says? So the laws were made up by men. And laws can be changed, just like they change the law of the age of retirement. They can change every other law. Social security doesn’t look out for people’s well beams, they only look out for their own pockets
Thank you for the info I am 74 now its been a ruff couple of years. i work part time some times. to help with bills, But its ruff.