You Stop Earning Delayed Social Security Retirement Credits at 70. A common piece of advice for those nearing retirement is to delay collecting retirement benefits until you turn 70.
This will allow you to collect 24% more in benefits than if you were to start collecting the day you turn your full retirement age if your full retirement age is 67 and 32% if your full retirement age is 66. Benefits accumulate at a rate of 8% per year, but once you turn 70 years old, this stops.
Benefits should automatically start once you turn 70, but if they do not, you should contact the SSA to ensure that all the data collected by them is correct and that there are no administrative reasons for you not to receive your benefits.
You’ll Receive A Bill For Future Part B Premiums
For those who choose to suspend their benefits (which can be done at any point between full retirement age and age 70), they may face a challenge. Regardless of whether or not your benefits are suspended or delayed, you will have to pay any Medicare premiums from your own savings.
Medicare payments are usually taken out of your Social Security check, but if there is no check, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will bill you for Medicare Part B premiums.
It May Make You Ineligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits.
Before deciding to increase your benefits by waiting, consider your economic situation in full.
If you are a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary, rejecting your Social Security check may disqualify you from receiving this income, as it is meant for those who need it the most, and those in need do not reject a check.
So, if you are counting on this money to make ends meet, check with an SSA representative to see if it would be possible to continue receiving the benefit or if it would render you ineligible.
