Dear Larry,
I am receiving a pension from Greece as a retired university faculty. After moving to the US I became a US citizen, worked again in academics and I have recently retired as university faculty. I am eligible for social security benefits. Would my pension from Greece affect my social security benefits?
Thank you very much.
Regards,
Chris

Hi Chris,

It's highly probable. It sounds like your Social Security retirement benefit amount will be likely be lowered due to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). If a person receives a pension that's based on their work and earnings that were exempt from U.S. Social Security taxes, the WEP provision can cause that person's Social Security retirement benefit rate to be calculated using a less generous computation formula than the one that's normally used to calculate benefits. For more detailed information about the formula, refer to the following Social Security publication: https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10045.pdf.

Our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) is programmed to handle WEP benefit computations, so you may want to strongly consider using the software to fully analyze your options so that you can determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry