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Veterans Day reminder: military service and Social Security
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[November
08, 2011]
Each
year, on November 11, America observes Veterans Day and honors the
men and women who have served in our nation’s Armed Forces. Many of
our Vietnam era veterans are now nearing retirement age, or already
there. It is important that they — and other American service
personnel — know just what retirement benefits they can count on
from Social Security as they make their future financial plans.
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Like most of the civilian
workforce, all current military personnel pay Social Security taxes
and earn Social Security coverage. Earnings for active duty military
service or active duty training have been covered under Social
Security since 1957. Also, earnings for inactive duty service in the
reserves (such as weekend drills) have had Social Security coverage
since 1988. In
addition to regular military pay, Social Security adds special
earnings credits to an individual’s Social Security record when he
or she serves in the military. The extra earnings are for periods of
active duty or active duty training. If, for example, a person
served in the military between 1957 and 1977, he or she has been
credited with $300 in additional earnings for each calendar quarter
in which active duty basic pay was earned. These extra earnings may
help someone qualify for Social Security or increase the amount of
the Social Security benefit.
The number of credits an
individual needs to qualify for Social Security depends on his or
her age and the type of benefit. Any future Social Security benefit
payment depends on a person’s earnings, averaged over a working
lifetime. Generally, the higher a person’s earnings, the higher his
or her Social Security benefit will be.
And remember that Social
Security is more than retirement. If a worker becomes disabled
before reaching retirement age, he or she may be eligible for Social
Security disability benefits. A disabled worker’s spouse and
dependent children also may be eligible for benefits. If a worker
dies, the widow or widower and dependent children may be eligible
for Social Security survivors benefits.
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If you, or someone you know,
were wounded while on active duty in the military, find out more
about what Social Security can do by visiting our website designed
specifically for wounded warriors:
www.socialsecurity.gov/woundedwarriors.
There, you will find answers to a number of commonly asked
questions, as well as other useful information about disability
benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Veterans and others who are
within 10 years of retirement age should begin planning for
retirement. A good place to start is with Social Security’s
Retirement Estimator at
www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator.
For more information, you
can read our fact sheet, Military Service and Social Security,
which is available on our website at
www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10017.html.
By Judith Bartels
Social Security District
Manager in Springfield, IL
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