Q: I am a 63 and ready to retire. I am from Romania where I worked for 15 years and paid for the corresponding Romanian Social Security, so I got a small pension (about $250) from there. I moved to the U.S. in 1985 and became a U.S. citizen. I’ve worked here for 25 years and pay for U.S. Social Security. I never worked again in Romania after I came to the U.S. I applied for Social Security in the U.S. and it seems that my U.S. Social Security benefits will be reduced because I get a pension from Romania.…
Browsing: Windfall elimination provision
Q: I just received notice from Social Security that my benefits check may be reduced because of the windfall elimination provision. I retired under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset program Oct. 31, 2010. My time in service under CSRS was approximately five years, nine months. I withdrew the money that I put in after each job because at the time I did not expect to retire from civil service. My last withdrawal from CSRS was from the period of May 1981 to December 1982. I returned to government work in May 1984 and was placed in the CSRS Offset…
Q: I requested retirement calculations for mid-2014 and recently learned that after I left the government in September 1984, the retirement money I withdrew would have to be repaid in order to receive the benefits for that money. I withdrew $3,700; repayment with accumulated interest would be more than $22,000. I returned to the government in March 1987 under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset program. I thought I read that if a person who receives money under CSRS can also receive full Social Security benefits (no windfall) if that person has enough credits with Social Security (approximately 30 years).…
Q: My latest Social Security estimate pamphlet says the maximum monthly reduction for WEP in 2010 is $381. Does that mean I would take whatever amount they estimate my monthly amount will be and can count on having no more than $381 deducted from that amount for the WEP penalty? A: The windfall elimination provision reduces but does not eliminate the Social Security benefit of anyone who receives an annuity from a retirement system where he didn’t pay Social Security taxes, such as CSRS, and has fewer than 30 years of substantial earnings under Social Security. To find out how…
Q: In calculating the effect of WEP, how do the years I work between age 66 and 70 count? I plan to keep working and apply for Social Security when I am 70. At age 66, I will only have 18 years of substantial contributions under Social Security. If I continue to work until I am 70, will the additional four years of substantial contributions count in calculating the WEP when I apply for Social Security? Or will the WEP be based only on my years of substantial contributions as of age 66? A: The windfall elimination provision is applied…
Q: I recently went into the Social Security office and was given three different answers by three different people regarding offsets and the windfall elimination provision. I received an increase in my Social Security monthly payment for 2011 based on my 2009 earnings. In 2009, I made more then the minimum and qualified for another year (26 years now) toward my 30-year full exemption from the offset and windfall, so should Social Security also have given me an additional 5 percent because I now have one more year of substantial earnings toward my 30-year exemption? I was told by the…
Q: A friend told me that her monthly Social Security benefit was reduced by $250 because of the profits made from the sale of a house that she inherited from her mother. Can this be true? A: The Social Security earnings limit only applies to earnings from wages or self-employment, and then only for those individuals who haven’t reached full retirement age. In the ordinary course of events, income received through the sale of a home wouldn’t be considered to be earnings. However, if she reported any portion of the proceeds as earnings on her federal income tax return (because…
Q: I retired at age 55 with 34-plus years of service. I quit after 13 years of civil service and returned to civil service after 3 1/2 years of private employment. I just turned 61. I paid Social Security for over 20 years. If I elect to request Social Security benefits at age 62, how will this affect my civil service pension? A: Because you are now covered by CSRS Offset, at age 62 your annuity will be offset by the amount of Social Security benefits you earned while covered by CSRS Offset. The net effect will be that you’ll…
Q: I am a federal employee and I am also receiving Social Security benefits. I understand that when I retire and start receiving my civil service annuity, my monthly Social Security benefits will be recalculated because of the windfall elimination provision. At the time I started receiving Social Security, my number of years of substantial earnings for WEP purposes was 23. Because I am a Federal Employees Retirement System transferee, my current salary is subject to FICA. Will the years subsequent to the initial receipt of Social Security will be added to my 23 years? In other words, if I…
Q: I have 33 years under the Civil Service Retirement System. Prior to that, I was with a private company and completed 32 quarters under Social Security. I will be 70 years old in June. My separation notice under the Base Closure and Realignment Act will be issued in June, and I will have to leave my job by Sept. 15. What are my best options to qualify for Social Security (40 quarters)? I understand there will be offset payments. Should I continue work two more years, finding another job after Sept. 15, and forget Social Security? A: You can…