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  Will I receive more benefits if I delay my retirement?
  Question
  Will I receive more benefits if I delay my retirement?
  Answer
 

Some people decide to continue working full-time beyond retirement age. In that case, one can increase their Social Security benefit in two ways:

  • Each additional year a person works adds another year of earnings to their Social Security record. Higher lifetime earnings may result in higher benefits when one retires.
  • In addition, a person's benefit will be increased by a certain percentage if he/she delays retirement. These increases, called delayed retirement credits, will be added in automatically from the time one reaches full retirement age until that individual starts taking benefits or reaches age 70.

How Much Will Delayed Retirement Benefits Increase My Benefit? 

Year of Birth 

Yearly Rate of Increase

Monthly Rate of Increase

1930 

4.5%

3/8 of 1% 

1931-1932 

5.0%

5/12 of 1% 

1933-1934 

5.5%

11/24 of 1% 

1935-1936 

6.0%

1/2 of 1% 

1937-1938 

6.5%

13/24 of 1% 

1939-1940 

7.0%

7/12 of 1% 

1941-1942 

7.5%

5/8 of 1% 

1943 or later 

8.0%

2/3 of 1%

See our calculator to assist you in computing the amount of increase that you may receive in delayed retirement credits.


 
 
 
  
 
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