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When you work and pay Social
Security taxes, you earn “credits” toward Social Security benefits.
If you were born in 1929, or later, you need 40 credits or 10 years
of work to qualify for retirement benefits. No retirement benefits
can be paid until you have the required number of credits. If you
stop working before you have enough credits to qualify for benefits,
the credits will remain on your Social Security record. If you
return to work later, you can add more credits so that you qualify.
Your benefit amount is
based on how much you earned during your working career. Higher
lifetime earnings result in higher benefits. A worker with average
earnings can expect a retirement benefit that replaces about 40
percent of his or her average lifetime earnings. Social Security
was never intended to be your only source of income when you
retire. You also will need other savings, investments, pensions, or
retirement accounts to make sure you have enough money to live
comfortably when you retire.
Your benefit payment also
is affected by the age at which you decide to retire and begin
receiving benefits. If you were born in 1942 or earlier, you
already are eligible for your full Social Security benefit. If you
were born from 1943 to 1960, the age at which full retirement
benefits are payable increases gradually to age 67.
You can get Social Security
retirement benefits as early as age 62, but if you retire before
your full retirement age, your benefits will be reduced,
based on your age. If you retire at age 62, your benefit would be
about 25 percent lower than what it would be if you waited until you
reach full retirement age. You may choose to keep working even
beyond your full retirement age. If you do, you can increase your
future Social Security benefits — up until age 70.
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Choosing when to retire is an
important decision, but it’s also a personal choice and one you
should carefully consider. When’s the best time? There is no
one-size-fits-all answer. Social Security offers a list of factors
to consider in the publication When to Start Receiving Retirement
Benefits at
www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10147.html.
In addition, Social Security provides an online Retirement
Estimator to get immediate and personalized retirement benefit
estimates to help you plan for your retirement. The Retirement
Estimator is a convenient and secure financial planning tool,
allowing you to create “what if” scenarios. For instance, you can
change your “stop work” dates or expected future earnings to create
and compare different retirement options. If you have a few minutes,
you have time to check it out at
www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator.
When you’re ready, you can
apply online for retirement benefits at
www.socialsecurity.gov
or call our toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213 (TTY:
1-800-325-0778). Or, you can make an appointment to visit any
Social Security office to apply in person.
By Judith Bartels
Social Security District
Manager in Springfield, IL
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