Check eligibility for Social Security benefits (2024)

FAQs

How do you determine eligibility for Social Security? ›

WHO CAN RECEIVE BENEFITS ON YOUR EARNINGS RECORD? You can receive Social Security benefits based on your earnings record if you are age 62 or older, or a person with a disability or blindness and have enough work credits. Family members who qualify for benefits on your work record do not need work credits.

You must earn at least 40 Social Security credits to be eligible for Social Security benefits. You earn credits when you work and pay Social Security taxes. The number of credits does not affect the amount of benefits you receive.

Eligibility criteria for the $1,800 monthly benefit

To be eligible for the $1800 Social Security payment, individuals must meet specific criteria. They must be at least 62 years old, have an income below the Federal Poverty Line, and be receiving regular benefits from the SSI.

Some American workers do not qualify for Social Security retirement benefits. Workers who don't accrue the requisite 40 credits (roughly 10 years of employment) are not eligible for Social Security. Some government and railroad employees are not eligible for Social Security.

If you become disabled before your full retirement age, you might qualify for Social Security disability benefits. You must have worked and paid Social Security taxes in five of the last 10 years.

Social Security's special minimum benefit pays at least $49.40 per month in 2023 and $50.90 in 2024. Social Security's special minimum benefit tops out at $1,033.50 per month in 2023 and $1,066.50 in 2024. You'll receive 100% of the benefit if you file at full retirement age or later.

But even if you never worked and therefore don't have an earnings record, you're not necessarily out of luck. If you're married (or were married) to someone who's entitled to Social Security, you can collect spousal benefits equal to 50% of your husband or wife's benefits at full retirement age.

The full retirement age is 66 if you were born from 1943 to 1954. The full retirement age increases gradually if you were born from 1955 to 1960 until it reaches 67. For anyone born 1960 or later, full retirement benefits are payable at age 67.

If you delay taking your benefits from your full retirement age up to age 70, your benefit amount will increase. If you start receiving benefits early, your benefits are reduced a small percent for each month before your full retirement age.

What are the signs you will be approved for social security disability? ›

Key Takeaways. Social Security benefits may or may not be taxed after 62, depending on your other income earned. If you only receive Social Security benefits and no other income, then you likely won't pay federal income taxes. In 2024, ten states tax Social Security benefits in some manner.

If the deceased reached retirement age, the surviving spouse can receive whatever the deceased was entitled to in the month of their death. Similarly, if the deceased already received monthly payments, the surviving spouse is entitled to what they received in the month of their death.

The $16,728 figure refers to the additional income you could receive annually by maximizing your Social Security benefits. It's not a one-time bonus payment but a result of specific strategies, including delaying your retirement benefits and optimizing your work history.

You can avoid this scenario by waiting until your full retirement age to begin taking benefits. This is 66 or 67 for most people, depending on when you were born. But there's a third option: Delay benefits until age 70. In doing so, you can get a Social Security bonus in the form of a higher benefit amount.

Social Security bases your retirement benefits on your lifetime earnings. We adjust or “index” your actual earnings to account for changes in average wages since the year the earnings were received. Then we calculate your average indexed monthly earnings from your highest 35 years of earnings.

You can receive Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62. However, we'll reduce your benefit if you start receiving benefits before your full retirement age. For example, if you turn age 62 in 2024, your benefit would be about 30% lower than it would be at your full retirement age of 67.