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As
you make plans for your future, one of the questions you'll probably ask
is, "How much will I get from Social Security?" There are several
ways you can find out. Social Security sends a yearly statement to everyone
age 25 or older who has worked under social security and does not yet
receive benefits. You should receive a Social Security Statement
every year about three months before your birthday.
You also can request a statement
by calling Social Security and asking for a form SSA-7004, Request
for Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement, or by downloading the
form from www.ssa.gov/online/ssa-7004.html
on the Internet. Or you can calculate your benefit yourself using the
programs available at www.ssa.gov/retire on
the Internet.
Even with an estimate, however,
many people still wonder exactly how their benefit is figured. Social
Security benefits are based on earnings averaged over most of a worker's
life-time. Your actual earnings are first adjusted or "indexed"
to account for changes in average wages since the year the earnings were
received. Then we calculate your average monthly indexed earnings during
the 35 years in which you earned the most. We apply a formula to these
earnings and arrive at your basic benefit, or "primary insurance
amount" (PIA). This is the amount you would receive at your full
retirement age, 65 or older, depending on your date of birth. The full
retirement age for people born in 1938 is 65 and 2 months. This age will
increase gradually each year until it reaches 67 for people born in 1960
or later.
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Factors That Can Raise Or Lower Your Retirement Benefit
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The
monthly benefit you receive from Social Security may not be the basic
benefit. Your actual benefit may be higher or lower than that amount if
any of the following is true.
- You receive benefits before your
full retirement age.
You can begin to receive
Social Security benefits as early as age 62, but at a reduced rate.
Your basic benefit will be reduced by a certain percent for
each month that you receive benefits before your full retirement age.
The closer you are to your full retirement age when you begin receiving
benefits, the greater your benefit amount.
- You receive cost-of-living increases.
You are eligible for cost-of-living
benefit increases starting with the year you become 62. This is true
even if you don't get benefits until 65 or even 70. Cost-of-living
increases are added to your benefit beginning with the year you reach
62 up to the year you start getting benefits
- You delay your retirement past
your full retirement age.
You may continue working past the full retirement
age and not begin to receive Social Security benefits. If you choose
to do this, your benefit amount will be increased by a certain percent
for every month that you are past your full retirement age but do
not receive benefits. These increases are automatically added to your
benefit until you reach age 70.
- You are a government worker with
a pension.
If you also get or are eligible for a pension
from work where you didn't pay Social Security taxes, usually a government
job, a different formula is applied to your average monthly earnings.
To find out how your benefit is figured, contact us and ask for a
copy of A Pension From Work Not Covered By Social Security
(Publication No. 05-10045).
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For More Information
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You can use
the worksheet below to estimate your retirement benefit if
you were born in 1938. You also can get information 24 hours a day by
calling Social Security's toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213.
Or visit us at www.ssa.gov on the Internet.
People who are deaf or hard of hearing may call our toll-free TTY number,
1-800-325-0778, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on business days.
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Estimating Your Social Security Retirement Benefit
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For Workers Born In 1938
This
worksheet shows how to estimate the Social
Security monthly retirement benefit you would be eligible for at
age 62 if you were born in 1938. It also allows you to estimate
what you would receive at age 65 and 2 months, your full retirement
age, excluding any cost-of-living adjustments for which you may
be eligible. If you continue working past age 62, your additional
earnings could increase your benefit.
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Step
1:
Enter your actual earnings
in Column B, but not more than the amount shown
in Column A. If you have no earnings, enter "0." |
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Step
2:
Multiply the amounts in
Column B by the "index factors" in Column
C, and enter the results in Column D. This gives you your "indexed
earnings," or the approximate value of your earnings in current
dollars. |
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Step
3:
Choose from Column
D the 35 years with the highest amounts. Add these amounts.
|
$__________________ |
Step
4:
Divide the result from
Step 3 by 420 (the number of months in 35 years). Round down to
the next lowest dollar. This will give you your average indexed
monthly earnings. |
$__________________ |
Step
5:
- Multiply the first $531 in Step 4 by 90%.
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$__________________
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-
Multiply the amount in Step 4 over $531 and
less than or equal to $3,202 by 32%.
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$__________________ |
- Multiply the amount in Step 4 over $3,202 by 15%.
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$__________________ |
Step
6:
Add a, b and c from Step
5. Round down to the next lowest dollar. This is your estimated
monthly retirement benefit at age 65 and 2 months, your full retirement
age. |
$__________________ |
Step 7:
Multiply the amount in
Step 6 by 80%. This is your estimated monthly retirement benefit
at age 62. |
$__________________ |
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Year |
A. Maximum Earnings |
B. Actual Earnings |
C. Index Factor |
D. Indexed Earnings |
1951 |
$3,600 |
|
10.31 |
|
1952 |
3,600 |
|
9.71 |
|
1953 |
3,600 |
|
9.19 |
|
1954 |
3,600 |
|
9.15 |
|
1955 |
4,200 |
|
8.74
|
|
1956 |
4,200 |
|
8.17 |
|
1957 |
4,200 |
|
7.93 |
|
1958 |
4,200 |
|
7.86 |
|
1959 |
4,800 |
|
7.49 |
|
1960 |
4,800 |
|
7.20 |
|
1961 |
4,800 |
|
7.06 |
|
1962 |
4,800 |
|
6.73 |
|
1963 |
4,800 |
|
6.56 |
|
1964 |
4,800 |
|
6.31 |
|
1965 |
4,800 |
|
6.20 |
|
1966 |
6,600 |
|
5.84 |
|
1967 |
6,600 |
|
5.54 |
|
1968 |
7,800 |
|
5.18 |
|
1969 |
7,800 |
|
4.90 |
|
1970 |
7,800 |
|
4.67 |
|
1971 |
7,800 |
|
4.44 |
|
1972 |
9,000 |
|
4.05 |
|
1973 |
10,800 |
|
3.81 |
|
1974 |
13,200 |
|
3.59 |
|
1975 |
14,100 |
|
3.34 |
|
1976 |
15,300 |
|
3.13 |
|
1977 |
16,500 |
|
2.95 |
|
1978 |
17,700 |
|
2.73 |
|
1979 |
22,900 |
|
2.51 |
|
1980 |
25,900 |
|
2.31 |
|
1981 |
29,700 |
|
2.10 |
|
1982 |
32,400 |
|
1.99 |
|
1983 |
35,700 |
|
1.89 |
|
1984 |
37,800 |
|
1.79 |
|
1985 |
39,600 |
|
1.72 |
|
1986 |
42,000 |
|
1.67 |
|
1987 |
43,800 |
|
1.57 |
|
1988 |
45,000 |
|
1.49 |
|
1989 |
48,000 |
|
1.44 |
|
1990 |
51,300 |
|
1.37 |
|
1991 |
53,400 |
|
1.32 |
|
1992 |
55,500 |
|
1.26 |
|
1993 |
57,600 |
|
1.25 |
|
1994 |
60,600 |
|
1.22 |
|
1995 |
61,200 |
|
1.17 |
|
1996 |
62,700 |
|
1.11 |
|
1997 |
65,400 |
|
1.05 |
|
1998 |
68,400 |
|
1.00 |
|
1999 |
72,600 |
|
1.00 |
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