Q. I retired in 2011 with 30 years and three months employment with the Postal Service at the age of 56 years and six months with a CSRS pension. I had 32 quarters of paying in to Social Security when I retired. I worked part time from June 2012 to October 2012 for an insurance company and earned about $6,200. How many more quarters do I have to go to receive a supplemental Social Security pension, and is it also true that I will only receive about one-third of what I would normally be entitled to?
A. You have already earned four credits in 2012. If you earn $4,640 in 2013, you’d get four more credits and be eligible for a Social Security benefit.
Yes, it’s true that your Social Security benefit would be less than it would have been if you didn’t receive an annuity from a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes. Because you do — and because you’ll have fewer than 30 years of substantial earnings under Social Security — you’ll be subject to the windfall elimination provision.
