When can someone born in 1960 collect social security

Because the longer you wait to start getting payments, the bigger the payments will be.

This gets complicated - hang in there. The government makes you wait until "full retirement age" in order to start collecting the full retirement payout that you've earned. So what's full retirement age? Good question. It used to be 65, but Congress voted in 1983 to raise it to 67 for everyone born in 1960 or later. For those workers born between 1938 and 1960, the full retirement age varies depending on your birth year. To find out yours, refer to the Social Security online retirement planner.

Full retirement age, or FRA, is the age when you are entitled to 100 percent of your Social Security benefits, which are determined by your lifetime earnings. It is gradually increasing, from 66 and 4 months for people born in 1956 to 66 and 6 months for those born in 1957 and, ultimately, 67 for people born in 1960 or later.

Those dates apply to the retirement benefits you earned from working and to spousal benefits, which your husband or wife can collect on your work record. They differ slightly for survivor benefits, which you can claim if your spouse dies. Full retirement age for survivors is 66 for people born in 1956 and gradually increases to age 67 for people born in 1962 or later.

Keep in mind

• Claiming benefits before full retirement age will lower your monthly payments; the earlier you file — you can start at age 62 — the greater the reduction in benefits. Spousal and survivor benefits are also reduced if you claim them before reaching full retirement age.
• You can increase your retirement benefits by waiting past your FRA to retire. Each month you put off filing up to age 70 earns you delayed retirement credits that boost your eventual benefit.

The earliest you can start collecting retirement benefits is age 62. You can apply once you reach 61 years and 9 months of age. 

However, Social Security reduces your payment if you start collecting before your full retirement age, or FRA. (FRA is 66 and 4 months for people born in 1956 and is gradually rising to 67 for those born in 1960 or later.) Only then do you qualify for 100 percent of your basic monthly benefit, which is calculated from your 35 highest-earning years.

Your payment will increase even more if you wait until age 70 to apply, as you’ll be accruing delayed retirement credits. (You can apply later than 70, but it doesn’t change your benefit.)

The starting age can differ for other types of Social Security benefits.

Spousal benefits: These can begin at 62, as long as the spouse on whose work record you are claiming them is already receiving retirement benefits. Spousal benefits are reduced if taken before FRA.

Survivor benefits: You can apply for benefits on the record of a deceased spouse or ex-spouse at 60; 50 if you are disabled; or any age if you are caring for the deceased’s under-16 or disabled child. These are also reduced if claimed prior to full retirement age, which is currently 66 for survivors.

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI): No age requirement, but you must have spent some time in work in which you paid Social Security taxes. The amount of time increases with age, but you may qualify for SSDI with less time in the workforce than you need to collect retirement benefits. You must also demonstrate that your medical condition meets Social Security’s strict definition of disability and show evidence that it prevents you from working.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is facing a large backlog of disability claims that grew during the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency had about 833,000 applications for SSDI pending in March 2021, an 11.5 percent increase from one year earlier, according to a July 2022 report from the SSA's Office of the Inspector General.

Keep in mind

• The question of when you can receive benefits is separate from a more important question: When should you claim benefits? The answer is complicated and depends on your job situation, family circumstances, and financial and physical health.
• There is no minimum age for dependent children to receive benefits on the earnings record of a retired or deceased parent. These can begin at any time but in most circumstances end at age 18.
• Parents who were financially dependent on a son or daughter who dies can collect survivor benefits from age 62.

If you were born in 1960 or later, your full retirement age is 67 for Social Security.

For most people born in 1960, the retirement window starts in 2022, when they can begin taking Social Security benefits early, or as late as 2030, when benefits hit their peak. Of course, if your finances permit, you can retire at any time you wish, but Social Security is a key component of most retirees’ planning.

Some key things to know if you’re asking yourself when you can retire if you were born in 1960:

• You can start Social Security at 62, but your benefit will be permanently reduced (at 70% of full benefit) to reflect the early start. Also, if you keep working your benefit checks will be reduced by $1 for every $2 you earn over a certain amount, which in 2019 is $17,640.

• At 67, you will get 100% of your retirement benefit. The earnings test goes away, so you can earn as much as you want without reducing your check.

• If you wait to start until after 67, your benefit will increase by 8% each year until maxing out at age 70.

Social Security for those born in 1960

Delaying is a good idea for most people

“Researchers have found that most people will benefit from delaying Social Security at least until full retirement age.”

Researchers have found that most people will benefit from delaying Social Security at least until full retirement age. You probably will live beyond the “break even” age where the larger checks more than make up for the years of smaller checks you pass up.

If you’re the higher earner in a married couple, it’s even more important that you try to delay as long as possible. Your check will determine the survivor benefit that one of you will live on when the other one dies.

Retiring and claiming Social Security can be separate decisions

Most people quit work and start Social Security around the same time, but that’s not required. You can continue to work, either full time or part time, after starting Social Security. Or you can stop working and put off claiming, perhaps tapping your 401(k) or other retirement savings in the meantime. You can (and should) sign up for Medicare at 65, but you don’t have to be receiving Social Security to do so.

How much will you really need to retire?

Answering the question “When can I retire?” involves more than just Social Security, since those checks alone typically won’t provide enough for a comfortable retirement.

On average, Social Security replaces about 40% of late-career earnings for most workers. If you’re a high earner, chances are the Social Security will replace even less of your income. So you probably will need to supplement Social Security with money from retirement accounts and other savings if you want to have more than a bare-bones retirement.

To find out how much you’ll really need to retire, you can use our retirement calculator.

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