Retirement earnings test (US)
Under the United States social security system, workers who have reached 62 but have not yet reached the full social security retirement age are subject to a retirement earnings test, which effectively defers benefits for people whose earnings are above a given threshold.
Applicability
The test only applies to people who are below the
The reduction of benefits does not represent a decrease in expected lifetime benefits; it in fact only defers those benefits to later years.[3] When a worker who was subject to the earnings test reaches the Normal Retirement Age, the earnings test no longer applies to him. In addition, monthly benefits are increased to replace those taken by the earnings test. As a result, on average the earnings test has little or no effect on the worker's total lifetime benefits.
Table
The following table determines what bracket people under the Normal Retirement Age fall under spanning several years:
Year | Lower amount ($) | Upper amount ($) |
---|---|---|
2000 | 10,080 | 17,000 |
2001 | 10,680 | 25,000 |
2002 | 11,280 | 30,000 |
2003 | 11,520 | 30,720 |
2004 | 11,640 | 31,080 |
2005 | 12,000 | 31,800 |
2006 | 12,480 | 33,240 |
2007 | 12,960 | 34,440 |
2008 | 13,560 | 36,120 |
2009 | 14,160 | 37,680 |
2010 | 14,160 | 37,680 |
2011 | 14,160 | 37,680 |
2012 | 14,640 | 38,880 |
2013 | 15,120 | 40,080 |
2014 | 15,480 | 41,400 |
2015 | 15,720 | 41,880 |
References
- ^ "Retirement Earnings Test". Social Security Administration. July 24, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
- ^ "Social Security Handbook". Social Security Administration. September 27, 2005. Retrieved 2007-03-08.
- ^ SueKunkel. "Exempt Amounts Under the Earnings Test". www.ssa.gov.