I will turn 66 (full retirement age for SS) in 2 months. I worked for 17 years and qualify for SS from that work . I have been working as a teacher for the past 15 years and have not paid into SS for that work. My question is , If I plan to teach for 4 more years before I collect my teacher retirement. Can I receive SS benefits while i am still teaching and not have it reduced by WEP until I start to collect my teacher retirement in 4 years?
Hi,
Yes, you can. The less generous retirement benefit computation formula mandated by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) does not apply until you actually start receiving a non-covered pension (https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10045.pdf).
The maximization software available on this website is fully programmed to handle cases involving WEP and GPO (Government Pension Offset) considerations, so you may want to strongly consider using it before you file in order to make sure that you choose the best filing strategy.
Best, Jerry