Follow these steps to
make sure you will receive the maximum possible Social Security benefit.
Boost
your payout.
The amount of your Social Security payments depends on your
earnings history and the age
you sign up for benefits. Try these strategies to maximize your
payments:
Work for
at least 35 years.
Social Security benefits
are calculated based on the 35 years in which you earn the most. If
you don't work for at least 35 years, zeros are factored into the calculation,
which decreases your payout.
Earn
more.
Increasing your income by asking for a raise or earning income
from a side job will increase the amount you receive from Social Security in
retirement. Earnings of up to $132,900 in 2019 are used to calculate your
retirement payments.
Work
until your full retirement age.
You need to claim Social Security at your full
retirement age, which is 66 or 67 for most current workers, to get your
full payments. Monthly payments are permanently reduced for people who sign up
for Social Security before their full retirement age.
Delay
claiming until age 70.
After your full retirement age, payments will increase by about
8 percent for each year you delay
claiming Social Security up until age 70. After age 70, there is no
additional benefit for waiting to sign up for Social Security.
Claim
spousal payments.
Spouses may claim benefits based on their own work record or up
to 50 percent of the higher earner’s benefit, whichever is higher. If you were
married for at least 10 years, you can also claim Social Security benefits
based on an ex-spouse’s work record.
Include family.
If you have dependent children under age 19, you may be able to
secure additional Social Security payments for them worth up to one half of
your full retirement benefit to certain annual limits.
Social Security beneficiaries under their full retirement age
who earn more than $17,640 in 2019 will have $1 withheld for every $2 they earn
above the limit. The year you turn your full retirement age, the earnings limit
jumps to $46,920 and the penalty decreases to $1 withheld for every $3 earned
above the limit.
If the sum of your adjusted gross income, nontaxable interest
and half of your Social Security benefit is more than $25,000 for individuals
and $32,000 for couples, up to 50 percent of your Social
Security benefit could be taxable. If these income sources top $34,000
($44,000 for couples), income tax could be due on as much as 85 percent of your
Social Security benefit.
When one member of a married couples dies, the surviving spouse
can inherit the deceased spouse’s benefit payment if it’s more than his or her
current benefit. Retirees can boost the amount the surviving spouse will
receive by delaying claiming Social Security.
Create a My Social Security account and download your Social
Security statement annually to check that your earnings history and
Social Security taxes paid have been recorded correctly by the Social Security
Administration. Make sure you are getting credit for the taxes you're paying
into the system.
Try these 10 ways to increase your Social
Security benefit:
- Work
for at least 35 years.
- Earn more.
- Work until your full retirement
age.
- Delay claiming until age 70.
- Claim spousal payments.
- Include family.
- Don’t earn too much in
retirement.
- Minimize Social Security taxes.
- Maximize survivor’s benefits.
- Make sure your work counts.
Updated on Feb. 12, 2019: This slideshow was previously published on Aug. 10, 2012, and has been
updated with new information.
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