Carol Thomas has recently retired from the Social Security Administration after 28 years service. If you have any questions about Social Security, please ask. We will use the questions you send for future posts. I will never post anyone's name, or other identifiable information.

Q:  My brother filed for SS in Reno, Nv April 1st of this year. He turned 62 July 19th and was told he would get his first check Sept 1st. He told his company he was going to be retireing on Sept 1st, but on Aug 19th he got a letter from SS saying he made 29,600.00 dollars this year and that put him over the limit of earnings he was allowed for this year. He was told by the SS he can't start collecting SS until 01-01-09. I'm going to retire next year on July 20th at the age of 62. If I sign up next April will I have to wait till January 01, of the following year to collect SS ?
William

A:Dear Bill, Your brother is entitled to a check for any month that he does not earn over $1130. If he retires on August 31, 2008, he will be entitled to a check for September, which will come in October. The first year you are entitled to a check, the monthly limit is used. If you are 62 in July, the first month of entitlement is August which will get you a check in September. As long as you don't earn over the monthly amt from August on, you will be entitled to a check every month. Have your brother call Social Security and tell them that he stopped working on Aug 31 and to start his checks for sept. He should not be waiting until 1/2009.

Q:  I am 67 collecting SS on my exhusband's work record(I have none) Will I lose my SS benefit and medicare if I remarry? I have been told yes by my county office and no by the call to the 1800 #. I would like concrete info. so we can make a decision. (my ex is still living)how do I get a concrete answer?

A: Hi Marie, This is a difficult question and I am not surprised that you received 2 different answers. The correct answer to your question is that you can transfer from your ex-husbands account to your present husbands account provided he is over 62. You will not have the 1 year waiting period normally assessed to claimants remarrying. You will keep your medicare but the claim number will change to your new husbands ss# with a B. Also your benefit amt will be 1/2 of your new husbands full retirement rate. The catch is that you will not be eligible for money if your husband is not. If SS gives you a different answer please write back. This a tricky question that a person answering the phone might not know.

Q:  I am age 60 and my wife is age 55. We both work full time and pay into SS. I know that I will be able to get full benefits at age 66. My question is this: When my wife turns age 62 can I file for a Spousal Benefit based on her work record then change my claim when I am age 70 and file one my work record?

A: No, The only one that can file on a spouses' record first and switch to their own is widows and widowers. Remember if you want benefits at 62 you should file. Don't wait if you are not earning over the amount allowed by Social Security. Without knowing your numbers I can only get you approximates. Let me know if you have more questions.

Q:  I retired from the U.S. Government after 34 years in which I paid into the old Civil Service Retirement System. I then went to work paying into the social security system. I will be retiring again next year after paying into social security. Will I be penalized by social security or will I receive the full amount they are saying I will receive each month. Thanks, Jim

A: I also worked for the US Gov and yes there is an offset to your social security. The deduction will depend on the amt of years you worked under Social Security. If you worked 30 years you will have no offset. Give your local Social Security a call and leave your ssn and tell them the years you worked under the US Gov and they will send you an estimate of what you will get. Its not an easy question to answer correctly.

Q:  My wife will be 62 in few months and she is going to file for SS benefis. She only work about 10 years in her life. When she will be able to collect from my benefits. I'm 63 and planing to work few more years. My benefits amount at the age of 65 will that will be afected. When she will be able to receive from my benefits (at the age of 62 or when I retired).

A: Your wife should file for benefits at age 62 if she is not working and earning over the allowed amount. She worked for 10 years so that might mean that she has 40 quarters or the amt needed to get some SS under her own number. To get benefits as a wife, the husband must be eligible to receive benefits. Wife benefits are an additional amt and do not affect the husbands amt.

Q: I became disabled at age 50 and receive social security and medicare. I am now 54 and my wife is turning 62. Will my wife be able to receive 35% of my higher SS rate even though I am not 62 yet?

A: No she will not be able to file under your account until you are 62. There are no disabled spouse benefits.

If you would like clarification or have additional questions, please feel free to reply to this email.

Q: I have been told that if you work and pay into Social Security for 30 years or more and are also in the old Civil Service Retirement System that you will receive your full Social Security and will not have it reduced by the "windfall" deductions. Is that true?

A: This is true. 30 Years Of Coverage (yoc) could make you exempt from the windfall offset provision. However, there is a specific amount you must earn per year in order to have it count as a year of coverage.

You many want to look at this http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/wep-chart.htm

And let me know if you have any additional question.

A: "The wife is deemed to have filed for spouse's benefits when her husband files for his retirement benefits," said a Social Security Administration representative. "She cannot delay spouse's benefits until she reaches full retirement age. If her spousal benefit is higher than her retirement benefit, she will get a combination of benefits equaling the higher spousal benefit. (Social Security will always pay the spouse's own retirement benefit first).

"Additionally, anytime benefits are received before full retirement age, they are permanently reduced." Read SSA's chart on "How Social Security Benefits are Reduced" at this Web site.

Q: I expect to wait to collect Social Security until I am 66. I'll be 64 later this year. However I have a very high stress job and would like to make a change to something less stressful. I expect a job change would result in a salary decrease. My yearly statement from Social Security states the estimate of my benefit is assuming I continue making my current salary. I've been working for more than 40 years so I have the time in. What is the penalty for making less money in the final years up to your 66th birthday?

A: "Social Security benefits are based on earnings averaged over most of a worker's lifetime," an SSA representative said. "The actual earnings are first adjusted to account for changes in average wages since the year the earnings were received. Then, Social Security will calculate the average monthly indexed earnings during the worker's highest 35 years of earnings. We will apply a formula to these earnings and arrive at an individual's benefit amount. If a worker earns less in the last two years of their career, they would have two less years of higher earnings that could be included in the benefit formula. This may result in a slightly lower benefit amount."

Q: I remember learning somewhere that I could start my Social Security benefits at, say, age 62, and then at a later age [such as when I was eligible for full benefits] pay back what I received to date and switch to full benefits. Was I dreaming?

A: "Yes, he can withdraw his application for Social Security benefits that have already been paid," the SSA said. "He must file a written request for withdrawal and repay any benefits received. He can apply for benefits at his full retirement age, and receive full benefits."

Q: Can my spouse who has reached full retirement age collect benefits based on my record and then collect benefits on her record at age 70?

A: "Yes, an eligible spouse at full retirement age can collect benefits based on their spouse's record, then collect benefits based on their own record at age 70, to take advantage of delayed retirement credits," the SSA said. Learn more about delayed retirement credits at this Web site.

Q: When I retire I will receive payments from a 401(k) and a traditional IRA of approximately $60,000 per year. I do not intend to have a job. My annual Social Security benefit will be around $25,000. Will my Social Security benefit be subject to income tax even though I will not be working?

A: "A person will have to pay federal taxes on Social Security benefits if he/she files a federal tax return as an 'individual' and the total income is more than $25,000," said an SSA representative. "If a person files a joint return, he/she will have to pay taxes if the married couple has a total income that is more than $32,000. For more information, read IRS Publication 915 at this Web site.

Q: My father is 61 and my mother is 55, and have been married for 35 years. When my mother is old enough to take Social Security, it will be more advantageous for her to do so on the basis of her own work record (she has worked through all her adult life and so her own record is worth more than half of my father's).

I have seen a number of references to strategies whereby a spouse with a less substantial record will take early benefits on the basis of his/her own record, which is lower, and then switch to the spouse's record when the spouse begins collecting on his/her own benefits at his/her respective full retirement age.

My question is, can my mother do the opposite? That is, can she take half my father's benefit when she's 62 (and he's 68), then switch to her own record when she reaches full retirement age?

A: "For a spouse to qualify for retirement benefits based on the primary worker's record, the spouse cannot be entitled to a retirement or disability insurance benefit based on a primary insurance amount which equals or exceeds one-half the worker's primary insurance amount," the SSA said. Learn more at this Web site.

Q: If a woman (widow) remarries, would she lose her Social Security benefits if she receives Social Security based on her own work record? If she were collecting Social Security based on her former husband's work record, would she lose that pension? If she lost it by remarrying, would she get it back again if her present husband dies or gets divorced?

A: According to an SSA representative, "the remarriage of a widow(er) does not affect benefits received on his/her own work record. The remarriage will only affect a widow(er), if he/she is receiving benefits as a surviving spouse, surviving divorced spouse or disabled widow.

"Generally, you cannot get widow's or widower's benefits if you remarry before age 60. But remarriage after age 60 (or age 50 if you are disabled) will not prevent you from getting benefit payments based on your former spouse's work. And at age 62 or older, you may get benefits based on your new spouse's work, if those benefits would be higher.

And "generally, benefits cannot continue to be paid if the divorced spouse remarries someone other than the former spouse, unless the latter marriage ends (whether by death, divorce, or annulment), or the marriage is to a person entitled to certain types of Social Security auxiliary or survivor's benefits." For more information, visit this Web site.

Many other answers to Social Security questions can be found at the main Social Security site, www.socialsecurity.gov. Visit the site.

Question: If you are on Social Security what is the limit on the amount you can make if you go to work?

A:

The amount allowed by Social Security this year is $13,560 or if your using the monthly test $1,130 a month. If it is your full retirement year you are allowed to earn $36,120 from January to the month before your full retirement age month. If you are on Disability the rules are completely different.

Please let me know if you would like clarification or additional information.

Question: Return to work or not?

Hi, i have a question. My mother is 62 and has been collecting widowers benefits. In July of 2007 she went out of work on medical disability for treatment of breast cancer. We are deciding if she should return to work or not. How would her widowers benefits be affected if she does not return to work at this young age?

Hi, Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. If you have any questions about Social Security, please ask. This is a new blog for me and I will use the questions you send in for future blogs. I will never post any ones name, or other identifiable information in my post.

You should collect now if you are 62 and earning $13,560 or less per year. If you are planning on continuing to work, Social Security will hold $1.00 for ever $2.00 you earn over $13,560 from your benefits.

Question: You should collect now if you are 62 and earning $13,560 or less per year. If you are planning on continuing to work, Social Security will hold $1.00 for ever $2.00 you earn over $13,560 from your benefits.
A:

Widows/Widowers benefits start at age 60

For instance, you could earn $18,560.00 in 2008 and only have $2,500 of your social security benefits withheld. This would be 2 1/2 checks if your benefit rate was 1,000.00. You would be getting 9 1/2 checks!!! Dont wait if you think you might be eligible because Social Security CAN NOT give retro benefits for retirement except in rare cases.