publicdata/ssa-gov
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Pull requests Projects Releases Packages Wiki Activity Actions
ssa-gov/www.ssa.gov/OACT/quickcalc/faqs.html

382 lines
25 KiB
HTML
Raw Blame History

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd">
<html><!-- #BeginTemplate "/Templates/import1.dwt" -->
<head>
<!-- tl: 15.main.1.1 -->
<!-- #BeginEditable name="doctitle" --><title>Quick Calculator FAQs</title><!-- #EndEditable -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="/templatefiles/master.css" type="text/css" media="screen">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="/templatefiles/custom.css" type="text/css" media="screen">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="/templatefiles/print.css" type="text/css" media="print">
<script type="text/javascript" src="/udm-resources/udm-custom.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/udm-resources/udm-control.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/udm-resources/udm-style.js"></script>
<!-- Search bar script -->
<script type="text/javascript"><!--
function resetForms() {
for (var i = 0; i < document.forms.length; i++ ) {
document.forms[i].reset();
}
}
//--></script>
<script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript" src="/scripts/triggerParams.js"></script>
<script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript" src="/scripts/stdLauncher.js"></script>
<!-- #BeginEditable name="metatags" -->
<meta name="coder" content="jlkun">
<meta name="dc.creator" content="OCACT">
<meta name="dc.date.created" scheme="ISO8601" content="2002">
<meta name="dc.date.reviewed" scheme="ISO8601" content="2008-11-25">
<meta name="dc.description" content="Quick Calculator FAQs">
<meta name="dc.language" scheme="ISO639-2" content="eng">
<meta name="dc.title" content="Answers to Quick Calculator Questions">
<meta name="keywords" content="benefits, quick calculator, social security">
<meta name="lead_content_manager" content="jlkun">
<!-- #EndEditable -->
<script>(window.BOOMR_mq=window.BOOMR_mq||[]).push(["addVar",{"rua.upush":"false","rua.cpush":"false","rua.upre":"false","rua.cpre":"false","rua.uprl":"false","rua.cprl":"false","rua.cprf":"false","rua.trans":"","rua.cook":"false","rua.ims":"false","rua.ufprl":"false","rua.cfprl":"false","rua.isuxp":"false","rua.texp":"norulematch","rua.ceh":"false","rua.ueh":"false","rua.ieh.st":"0"}]);</script>
<script>!function(e){var n="https://s.go-mpulse.net/boomerang/";if("False"=="True")e.BOOMR_config=e.BOOMR_config||{},e.BOOMR_config.PageParams=e.BOOMR_config.PageParams||{},e.BOOMR_config.PageParams.pci=!0,n="https://s2.go-mpulse.net/boomerang/";if(window.BOOMR_API_key="LERZW-HECFS-R8H4E-23UQ7-ERMQB",function(){function e(){if(!o){var e=document.createElement("script");e.id="boomr-scr-as",e.src=window.BOOMR.url,e.async=!0,i.parentNode.appendChild(e),o=!0}}function t(e){o=!0;var n,t,a,r,d=document,O=window;if(window.BOOMR.snippetMethod=e?"if":"i",t=function(e,n){var t=d.createElement("script");t.id=n||"boomr-if-as",t.src=window.BOOMR.url,BOOMR_lstart=(new Date).getTime(),e=e||d.body,e.appendChild(t)},!window.addEventListener&&window.attachEvent&&navigator.userAgent.match(/MSIE [67]\./))return window.BOOMR.snippetMethod="s",void t(i.parentNode,"boomr-async");a=document.createElement("IFRAME"),a.src="about:blank",a.title="",a.role="presentation",a.loading="eager",r=(a.frameElement||a).style,r.width=0,r.height=0,r.border=0,r.display="none",i.parentNode.appendChild(a);try{O=a.contentWindow,d=O.document.open()}catch(_){n=document.domain,a.src="javascript:var d=document.open();d.domain='"+n+"';void(0);",O=a.contentWindow,d=O.document.open()}if(n)d._boomrl=function(){this.domain=n,t()},d.write("<bo"+"dy onload='document._boomrl();'>");else if(O._boomrl=function(){t()},O.addEventListener)O.addEventListener("load",O._boomrl,!1);else if(O.attachEvent)O.attachEvent("onload",O._boomrl);d.close()}function a(e){window.BOOMR_onload=e&&e.timeStamp||(new Date).getTime()}if(!window.BOOMR||!window.BOOMR.version&&!window.BOOMR.snippetExecuted){window.BOOMR=window.BOOMR||{},window.BOOMR.snippetStart=(new Date).getTime(),window.BOOMR.snippetExecuted=!0,window.BOOMR.snippetVersion=12,window.BOOMR.url=n+"LERZW-HECFS-R8H4E-23UQ7-ERMQB";var i=document.currentScript||document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0],o=!1,r=document.createElement("link");if(r.relList&&"function"==typeof r.relList.supports&&r.relList.supports("preload")&&"as"in r)window.BOOMR.snippetMethod="p",r.href=window.BOOMR.url,r.rel="preload",r.as="script",r.addEventListener("load",e),r.addEventListener("error",function(){t(!0)}),setTimeout(function(){if(!o)t(!0)},3e3),BOOMR_lstart=(new Date).getTime(),i.parentNode.appendChild(r);else t(!1);if(window.addEventListener)window.addEventListener("load",a,!1);else if(window.attachEvent)window.attachEvent("onload",a)}}(),"".length>0)if(e&&"performance"in e&&e.performance&&"function"==typeof e.performance.setResourceTimingBufferSize)e.performance.setResourceTimingBufferSize();!function(){if(BOOMR=e.BOOMR||{},BOOMR.plugins=BOOMR.plugins||{},!BOOMR.plugins.AK){var n=""=="true"?1:0,t="",a="vht6pfix22vgcz6v47ja-f-86173b5f5-clientnsv4-s.akamaihd.net",i="false"=="true"?2:1,o={"ak.v":"39","ak.cp":"1204614","ak.ai":parseInt("728289",10),"ak.ol":"0","ak.cr":3,"ak.ipv":4,"ak.proto":"http/1.1","ak.rid":"3129025","ak.r":35636,"ak.a2":n,"ak.m":"dsca","ak.n":"essl","ak.bpcip":"169.231.231.0","ak.cport":43778,"ak.gh":"23.214.170.93","ak.quicv":"","ak.tlsv":"tls1.3","ak.0rtt":"","ak.0rtt.ed":"","ak.csrc":"-","ak.acc":"bbr","ak.t":"1742071762","ak.ak":"hOBiQwZUYzCg5VSAfCLimQ==gdL33llYzEGqeQ5j+N+4Z3wNGDCMErrXQofI8lldymt6g3tOOMRXPozwOi5lBR+m4UVUwPUKQwfjdD2+yGeBcLlCVqWF/hbKZ3BFn47m/Tv2/dAe8h54AYNjjSprn6KF2z0Iki8gcjoi4GTaTI5FkZu9wFR5freivOQru5M6dMUAa7m6seMlSkXkZBd7DVgpnaUZl61YwDaVJO9BR/YilqoqEIp/7pD1yQN05XRPCaHMyBfU1LBqqpQgfg1LvvVeEl6yPDJNMOIfKCxza+MC2a1GrOri4gIa5L7ZLeTgfOiczpXi6U14ilbIzT+8cowyeTJtdU18uA0BPXnSJ4qg4reQm+EijYzR6QDMR2dCIkCQBwzNGN/w3yIebwBGw3co7Q9KKx/cB8k2iylUGRLyoUkfBArcfxtwCVaJzPfCdHo=","ak.pv":"98","ak.dpoabenc":"","ak.tf":i};if(""!==t)o["ak.ruds"]=t;var r={i:!1,av:function(n){var t="http.initiator";if(n&&(!n[t]||"spa_hard"===n[t]))o["ak.feo"]=void 0!==e.aFeoApplied?1:0,BOOMR.addVar(o)},rv:function(){var e=["ak.bpcip","ak.cport","ak.cr","ak.csrc","ak.gh","ak.ipv","ak.m","ak.n","ak.ol","ak.proto","ak.quicv","ak.tlsv","ak.0rtt","ak.0rtt.ed","ak.r","ak.acc","ak.t","ak.tf"];BOOMR.removeVar(e)}};BOOMR.plugins.AK={akVars:o,akDNSPreFetchDomain:a,init:function(){if(!r.i){var e=BOOMR.subscribe;e("before_beacon",r.av,null,null),e("onbeacon",r.rv,null,null),r.i=!0}return this},is_complete:function(){return!0}}}}()}(window);</script></head>
<body onLoad="Poll(); return true; resetForms()">
<script type="text/javascript" src="/udm-resources/udm-mod-keyboard.js"></script>
<table width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td class="sstop" valign="bottom" align="left" width="25%">
<a href="#content" class="redskipnav">Skip to content</a><br>Social Security Online</td>
<td colspan="2" valign="bottom" class="titletext">
<!-- #BeginEditable name="sitetitle" -->Benefit Calculators<!-- #EndEditable -->
</td>
</tr></table><table width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0">
<tr class="printhide">
<td width="25%" valign="baseline" class="linkbar"><img src="/templateimages/blank.gif"
width="2" height="1" border="0" alt=""><a href="http://www.ssa.gov"
class="bar">www.socialsecurity.gov</a></td>
<td class="linkbar"><script type="text/javascript" src="/udm-resources/udm-dom.js"></script>
<!-- SSA Menu Bar -->
<!-- LAST UPDATED 11/03/15 -->
<a class="bar" href="/">Home</a>&#160;&#160;
<a class="bar" href="/ask/">FAQs</a>&#160;&#160;
<a class="bar" href="/agency/contact/">Contact Us</a>&#160;&#160;
<a class="bar" href="https://search.ssa.gov/search?affiliate=ssa">Search</a>
<script>
if (window.addEventListener) {
var css = '.linkbar:last-child form { display: none; }',
head = document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0],
style = document.createElement('style');
style.type = 'text/css';
if (style.styleSheet){
style.styleSheet.cssText = css;
} else {
style.appendChild(document.createTextNode(css));
}
head.appendChild(style);
}
</script>
</td>
<td width="25%" align="right" class="linkbar"><form
action="http://search.ssa.gov/search?" method="GET" name="gs">
<table width="100%" border="0" align="right" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td nowrap class="linkbar">
<table border="0" align="right" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="eightypercent">
<tr>
<td nowrap class="linkbar"><strong> <label for="q" class="bar">Search</label>
</strong>&nbsp;</td>
<td nowrap>
<input name="q" id="q" type=text class="eightypercent" value=""
size=17 maxlength=2048>
<input name="btnG" type=submit class="eightypercent" value="GO">
<input value="xml_no_dtd" name="output" type="hidden">
<input value="date:D:L:d1" name="sort" type="hidden">
<input value="UTF-8" name="ie" type="hidden">
<input value="default_frontend" name="client" type="hidden">
<input value="UTF-8" name="oe" type="hidden">
<input value="default_frontend" name="proxystylesheet" type="hidden">
<input value="1" name="proxyreload" type="hidden"></td>
</tr>
</table></td>
</tr>
</table></form></td>
</tr></table><table width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0">
<tr>
<td width="25%" valign="top" class="graystars">
<!-- #BeginEditable name="subsitehome" --><a href="index.html">Social Security Quick Calculator</a><!-- #EndEditable -->
</td>
<td colspan="2" valign="top">
<a href="http://www.ssa.gov"><img src="/templateimages/tinylogo.gif" width="52"
height="47" align="left" alt="SSA logo: link to Social Security Online home"
border="0"></a><a name="content"></a>
<!-- #BeginEditable name="pagetitle" -->
<h1>Answers to Quick Calculator Questions</h1>
<!-- #EndEditable -->
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<!-- #BeginEditable name="import" -->
<table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" summary="formatting">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled2-td">
<p><a href="index.html">Quick Calculator</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.ssa.gov/estimator/">Retirement Estimator</a> &#8212;
accesses your earnings history to provide accurate benefit estimates</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/AnypiaApplet.html">Online Calculator</a>
&#8212; requires you to enter your complete earnings history</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/anyPiaWepjs04.htm">Special-purpose version
of the Online Calculator</a> for those who receive a pension
from work not covered by Social Security</p>
<p><a href="../anypia/anypia.html">Detailed Calculator</a> &#8212;
powerful calculator you download to your computer</p>
</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled2-td">
<ol>
<!-- <li> <a href="#1">Why doesn't the benefit estimate from the Quick Calculator
match the amount on my Social Security Statement?</a> </li> -->
<li> <a href="#10">What earnings are covered under Social Security?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#2">How can I change the earnings that the Quick Calculator
estimates?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#3">What is a relative growth factor?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#4">Can I make "What If" calculations with my future earnings?</a></li>
<li> <a href="#5">Why must my age be 22 or greater to use the Quick Calculator?</a></li>
<li> <a href="#6">I am already retired and have no earnings. If I enter 0 for earnings
in the current year, why does the Quick Calculator tell me I am not eligible to receive a
benefit?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#7">Does the Quick Calculator assume I will have covered earnings up to the year
in which I start receiving a retirement benefit? What if I stop working sooner?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#8">How does the Quick Calculator estimate my past covered
earnings?</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#9">Does SSA have any examples that illustrate how retirement
benefits are calculated?</a> </li>
</ol></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<!-- <td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="1">1. Why doesn't
the benefit estimate from the Quick Calculator match the amount</a>
on my <a href="https://secure.ssa.gov/apps6z/isss/main.html">Social Security Statement</a>?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">The main reasons why
the two benefit estimates may not match are listed below.
<ol>
<li> The Social Security Statement shows estimates in today's dollars, but you may
have selected the "inflated (future) dollars" option when you used the Quick Calculator.
You must use today's dollars (the default) with the Quick Calculator in order to
get comparable results.</li>
<li>Social Security benefits are based on earnings, and the
Quick Calculator can not access your earnings record. It has only the
information you enter. The <a href="https://secure.ssa.gov/apps6z/isss/main.html">benefit
statement</a> you received from Social Security is much more accurate
because it uses your <i>actual</i> earnings record for past years,
while the Quick Calculator must <i>estimate</i> your past earnings.
<p>
If you compare the estimated earnings produced by the Quick Calculator
to your actual earnings, you will probably see many differences.
As you can see in the answer to the next question, you can change the
estimated earnings to make them as close as you wish to your actual
earnings.</li>
<li>
Another reason why the Quick Calculator may produce a different benefit estimate
is that it uses only the most common method for calculating a benefit. It can not
handle cases involving a non-covered pension (under the Windfall Elimination Provision),
but our <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/anyPiaWepjs04.htm">Online Calculator</a> (WEP version)
can. Our <a href="../anypia/anypia.html">"Detailed Calculator"</a> can handle all situations,
but must be downloaded to your computer and is more difficult to use.</li></ol></td>
</tr> -->
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="10">1.</a> What earnings
are covered under Social Security?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">Covered earnings are
<a href="http://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/ssact/title02/0210.htm">work-related earnings</a> which are
subject to Social Security taxation. Covered earnings include most types of wage income
and self-employment income.
Today almost all types of wages are covered by Social Security (notable exceptions
are earnings from certain state and local governments and from railroads).
<!-- Check your Social Security Statement to see your earnings history. The Statement will show
your covered earnings for each year up to the <a href="../COLA/cbb.html">taxable maximum</a>
applicable in each year. -->
<p>
If you had several years in non-covered employment, then we recommend that you <b>not</b> use the
Quick Calculator because the Quick Calculator will estimate all of your past earnings as
covered earnings and overestimate your benefit. Please use one of our
<a href="../anypia/index.html">other calculators</a>.</p></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="2">2. How can I change the
earnings that the Quick Calculator estimates?</a></td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td"> Because Social Security benefits are based on earnings,
the Quick Calculator must estimate your past earnings based on the earnings you enter for
the current year. After you enter the information required by the Quick Calculator, you will
see your benefit estimates and the phrase "See the earnings we used," located
under your retirement benefit estimates. To change your earnings, and hence your
benefit estimates, please follow the following steps.
<ul>
<li> Click on "See the earnings we used" to see the estimated earnings.</li>
<li> To change your past earnings, you have 2 options. You can
<ol><li> manually change the earnings shown for any year(s), or
<li> you can enter a "<a href="#3">relative growth factor</a>" for
your past earnings.</li>
</ol>
Note that if you select option 2, you must check the second option box
in addition to entering a growth factor in the box provided.</li>
<li> If you choose to see your benefit estimates in future dollars, you may enter
a growth factor for your future earnings.</li>
</ul>
You can change growth factors as often as you like.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="3">3. What is a relative
growth factor?</a></td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td"> A "relative growth factor" is a number that
the Quick Calculator uses to adjust earnings growth relative to the growth of national
<a href="../COLA/AWIgrowth.html">average wages</a>.
Because most people begin their working careers with relatively
few skills or job knowledge, they initially receive low wages.
Then, as their knowledge and/or skills increase, their wages
increase&#8212;typically faster than the increase in the average wage for all
workers. On the other hand, as people approach retirement, their wages
often grow slower than the increase in the average wage for all workers.
<p>
A zero growth factor, for example, means earnings will grow at the same rate
as the average wage index. A growth factor of 1 means that earnings will
grow 1 percent faster than average wages.
To illustrate, the national average wage index grew about
2.4 percent from 2000 to 2001. Using a growth factor of 1 would imply
about a 3.4-percent (1.01 times 1.024) growth in earnings from
2000 to 2001.
<p>
Please note that selecting a higher relative growth factor for past
earnings means that your past earnings will grow faster. However,
because your current earnings are fixed at the amount you gave,
earnings in earlier years will be lower!
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="4">4. Can I make
"What If" calculations with my future earnings?</a></td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td"> You can see what the estimated effect
of changing your future earnings will have on your benefits by taking the
following steps. But first you need to be satisfied with the estimated past
earnings used in your benefit calculation.
<ul>
<li> On the page where you enter your date of birth and current earnings,
select "inflated (future) dollars."</li>
<li> After you submit your request, click on "See the earnings we used."</li>
<li> Change your past earnings as described <a href="#2">above</a>.
The easiest way to change your past earnings is to change the growth factor
until the past earnings look fairly close to your actual earnings, and then
select option 1 to make adjustments to earnings for a few specific years.
</li>
<li> Once you are satisfied with your past earnings, enter a future-earnings
growth factor and submit your request. Be sure that option 1 for
past earnings is checked (this is the default), otherwise
the program will "forget" what you may have entered as actual
past earnings and use a past-earnings growth factor.</li>
</ul></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="5">5.</a>
Why must my age be 22 or greater to use the Quick Calculator?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">
To protect your privacy, the calculator does not have access to your earnings record and
so must <i>estimate</i> your earnings. To do that, it needs at least one year of full-time
earnings. People under age 22 are less likely to have full-time earnings, so we
discourage them from using the calculator.
<p>
<!-- You should rely on the Social Security benefit statement that was mailed to
you for the most accurate estimate of your future benefits. (The program used
to produce that statement has complete access to your earnings history, in
contrast to the Quick Calculator.) If you have not received a Social Security
benefit statement, you can <a href="https://secure.ssa.gov/apps6z/isss/main.html">request
one</a>. -->
</p></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="6">6.</a> If I enter 0 for earnings
in the current year, why does the Quick Calculator tell me I am not eligible to receive a
benefit?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">The calculator <i>estimates</i> your
past earnings on the basis of your current earnings. Thus, if you enter
zero (0) for your current-year earnings, the calculator assumes your past
earnings are also zero and hence you would not be eligible for benefits. To
prevent this, you need to enter the last year in which you had covered
earnings and the amount of such earnings. Then the calculator will
estimate your earnings for prior years and provide you
with benefit estimates.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="7">7.</a> Does
the Quick Calculator assume I will have covered earnings up to the year
in which I start receiving a retirement benefit?
What if I stop working sooner?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">
Unless you specify a retirement date that precedes the date when you
reach age 62 (the earliest age at which you can receive retirement
benefits), the calculator assumes you will have covered earnings
up to the year in which you start receiving a benefit.
<p>
If you plan to retire before you attain age 62, please be sure to give the month
and year of your <a href="index.html#retiredate">future retirement date</a>.
Please note that your benefit generally will be somewhat lower;
the earlier you stop working, the lower it will be.
<p>
If you have already stopped working and have no earnings in the current year,
be sure to enter 0 for current year earnings and then enter the last year
in which you had earnings and the amount of such earnings.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="whiteruled-td"><a name="8">8.</a> How does
the Quick Calculator estimate my past covered earnings?</td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">
The calculator bases your estimated past earnings on
<ol>
<li>the latest earnings figure you provide,</li>
<li>the <a href="../COLA/AWIgrowth.html">national average wage indexing series</a>, and</li>
<li>a <a href="#3">relative growth factor</a> that is initially set to 2 percent.</li>
</ol>
<a href="#2">You can change the earnings</a> that the calculator uses by either changing
the relative growth factor or by entering your actual earnings year by year.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="25%" class="greycell"><a name="9">9.</a>
Does SSA have any examples that illustrate how retirement benefits
are calculated? </td>
<td valign="top" class="grayruled-td">
Yes, we have <a href="../ProgData/retirebenefit1.html">examples
of retirement benefit calculations</a>.
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<!-- #EndEditable -->
<table class="printhide" width="100%" border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0">
<tr bgcolor="#333366"><td height="1" colspan="3"></td></tr>
<tr>
<td width="26%" valign="middle">&nbsp;<a href="http://www.usa.gov"><img
src="/templateimages/firstgov3.gif" width="72" height="15"
alt="USA.gov: Portal to U.S. government agencies" border="0"></a></td>
<td valign="top" class="seventypercent">
<a href="http://www.ssa.gov/privacy.html">Privacy Policy</a>&nbsp;
| <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/websitepolicies.htm">Website Policies
&amp; Other Important Information</a>&nbsp;
| <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/sitemap.htm">Site Map</a><br />
Last reviewed or modified Tuesday Nov 25, 2008</td>
<td align="center" valign="middle"><div align="center">
<a href="http://www.ssa.gov/textsize.htm"><span class="seventypercent">Need </span>
<span class="ninetypercent">Larger </span>Text?</a></div></td>
</tr>
</table></body>
<!-- #EndTemplate --></html>
Reference in a new issue View git blame Copy permalink