Full retirement age (FRA) is the historic period at which yous tin merits your standard Social Security do good, or your primary insurance amount (PIA), from Social Security. Your PIA is the standard amount you can wait to receive based on your inflation-adjusted average wages earned throughout your career. Full retirement age is 66 for those born in 1954 and 67 for those born in 1960 or later -- it varies depending on your nascence twelvemonth.

It is important to know your full retirement historic period, every bit information technology affects when you lot can merits Social Security without reducing your benefits, the corporeality of delayed retirement credits you lot can earn in society to raise your benefits, and how much you can earn from working while receiving Social Security without forfeiting whatever of your benefits.

Social Security full retirement age chart

The chart below shows the total retirement age for people born at different times.

A table of Social Security full retirement age by birth years.

Data source: Social Security Administration. Chart past author.

How does full retirement historic period affect your Social Security benefits?

If you claim your benefits at total retirement age, you lot volition receive your standard Social Security benefit amount. If you merits prior to FRA, yous volition be subject field to early filing penalties that reduce your benefit by the post-obit amounts:

  • 5/9 of 1% for each of the showtime 36 months before FRA
  • v/12 of 1% for each subsequent calendar month earlier FRA

This amounts to a 6.7% annual reduction for each of the starting time three years and an boosted 5% reduction for each following yr before FRA. If y'all claim benefits at 62 with an FRA of 67, you volition face up a full 30% reduction in benefits.

By contrast, if y'all claim benefits later FRA, you receive delayed retirement credits valued at two/3 of 1% per calendar month. This results in an 8% annual increase to your monthly benefit. Delayed retirement credits can be earned until age 70, later which time there is no financial benefit to delaying your merits. Delayed retirement credits cannot be earned if y'all are challenge either spousal or survivor benefits.

Working later on total retirement historic period FAQ

Retirees may work while collecting Social Security benefits, only those younger than their FRA volition be subject to the retirement earnings examination (RET).

Nether this examination, if your earnings exceed a certain limit (which changes annually), yous will temporarily forfeit some or all of your benefits. Once you accomplish full retirement historic period, your benefit is recalculated and you may receive most of that money back.

Tin I work after full retirement historic period?

You can piece of work after full retirement age and earn as much equally yous'd like without the corporeality of your Social Security benefits being affected at all.

How much can I earn if I work later on my total retirement age?

If you continue to work after reaching full retirement age, you may work and earn as much as y'all'd like. You will non be subject to the retirement earnings test, and your Social Security benefits volition not exist affected.

If you lot work prior to FRA, you may forfeit role of your benefits if you earn in a higher place annual thresholds. Yet, your benefit amount will be recalculated at full retirement historic period to business relationship for most of those forfeited funds.

Does working after full retirement age increase Social Security benefits?

Working afterwards full retirement age could increment your Social Security benefits. Your benefits are based on average wages over your 35 highest-earning years (adjusted for aggrandizement).

Fifty-fifty after you've reached total retirement historic period, and even if you've already claimed benefits, the Social Security Administration continues to recalculate your average annual wage to account for new income. If your earnings after FRA are higher than previous years and raise your average wage for your 35 top-earning years, your benefits could rise appropriately.

Other central questions nearly full retirement historic period

There are a few other cardinal things you lot may need to know about full retirement historic period.

Do survivor benefits increase after full retirement age?

If yous are the surviving spouse who is challenge benefits based on your deceased partner's work tape, there is no benefit to waiting until after FRA to claim your benefits. Yous do not earn delayed retirement credits, so your benefit volition non increase.

Nevertheless, if you are the college-earning spouse, delaying your claim for benefits until later FRA can result in your widow(er) receiving more than monthly income, as your widowed partner will receive the higher of the two monthly benefits you were each receiving.

Are Social Security benefits taxable at full retirement age?

Your historic period does not accept an impact on whether yous volition owe tax on Social Security benefits. Depending on your earnings, y'all may pay federal taxes on Social Security benefits regardless of the age at which y'all claim.

Social Security benefits are taxed on amounts exceeding the "conditional income" limit fix by the IRS. To calculate your provisional income, add together up all non-Social Security sources of income, including nontaxable income such as municipal bail involvement, and include one-half of your annual Social Security income.

Single filers earning provisional income betwixt $25,000 and $34,000 and married joint filers earning betwixt $32,000 and $44,000 will owe income taxes on fifty% of their Social Security benefits. For single filers with provisional income in a higher place $34,000 and married filers above $44,000, upwards to 85% of Social Security benefits will be taxable.

Is your full retirement age afflicted by where yous live?

Your FRA is not affected by where y'all live. Most Social Security rules, including those that determine benefit amount and claiming age, are fix past federal law. Nevertheless, some states practise tax Social Security benefits, then where yous alive can affect tax levels on your retirement income. But over again, the age at which you claim benefits won't touch your tax charge per unit -- your income is the key factor.

Skilful Q&A

The Motley Fool touched base with retirement expert Jialu Streeter, Ph.D., a Research Scholar at the Stanford Center on Longevity.

Jialu Streeter, Ph.D., a Research Scholar at the Stanford Center on Longevity. Jialu's research primarily focuses on the economics of aging, retirement security, and financial security and mental wellbeing of older adults.

Jialu Streeter, Ph.D., a Research Scholar at the Stanford Center on Longevity. Jialu's research primarily focuses on the economics of aging, retirement security, and financial security and mental wellbeing of older adults.

The Motley Fool: Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many Americans now fearfulness they won't exist able to retire. What is your advice for someone who may be worried virtually retiring because of recent financial setbacks?

Streeter: First, I would suggest the person and their family have a thorough review of all their assets and debt, including home equity, mortgages, educatee loans (including their children'south if they have co-signed), retirement plan balances, and other checking and savings accounts. Second, information technology's of import to understand the implications of retirement age on the Social Security benefits. For some people who are in good health and can afford to delay Social Security, it might be better for them to delay in order to receive higher benefits for the rest of their lives. Tertiary, the person or family demand to accept an honest chat well-nigh their envisioned retirement manner. E.g., will they travel much? Will they dine out or cook at dwelling house? Lastly, the longevity take chances. Whether they will outlive their wealth. People need to put all these points together in order to see whether they are on track of a retirement life that they had planned for.