Social Security Benefits

Ready to test your knowledge? You'll have ten multiple choice questions to answer. Click on each question to reveal the question and multiple choice answers. After you've completed answering all ten questions, click "Grade Me!" at the end of the quiz to see how you did.

Question 1

To determine your social security retirement benefit, Social Security looks at how much money you earned while working over what time frame?

(A) Your highest-earning 35 years.	Correct Incorrect
(B) Your most recent 25 years.	Correct Incorrect
(C) Your highest earning 25 years.	Correct Incorrect
(D) Your most recent 35 years.	Correct Incorrect

Social security benefits are calculated based on your highest earning 35 years. Earnings are adjusted or ´indexed´ to account for changes in average wages since your wages were earned. The Social Security Administration then applies a formula to those earnings to arrive at the basic benefit, or "primary insurance amount". That is how much you would receive at your full retirement age — 65 or older, depending on your date of birth.

Question 2

If both you and your spouse collect social security retirement benefits, how long do you have to be married in order to be eligible to collect your spouse's social security benefit (if it is larger than your own) upon their death?

(A) 9 months	Correct Incorrect
(B) 1 day	Correct Incorrect
(C) 2 years	Correct Incorrect
(D) 5 years	Correct Incorrect

To be eligible for a Social Security survivor´s benefit, the widow or widower needs to have been married to the deceased at the time of their death and for the immediate nine months preceding their death. There are several exceptions to this. For instance, if the deceased´s death occurred as an active duty member of the armed forces and in the line of duty an exception can be made to that requirement. And if the spouse is still living, the spousal benefit is available if the couple is married at the time of the application and for one continuous year immediately preceding the application date.

Question 3

At what age can you start collecting Social Security benefits?

(A) 62	Correct Incorrect
(B) 60	Correct Incorrect
(C) 55	Correct Incorrect
(D) 65	Correct Incorrect

The earliest date an individual can begin collecting Social Security retirement benefits is age 62. At that age, you will get 75% of the full monthly retirement benefit. That´s because you´ll be receiving benefits for an additional 48 months. The age at which you can retire and still collect 100% of your full monthly retirement benefit depends on the year you were born. Individuals born from 1960 and later have a full retirement age of 67. Those born in 1937 and earlier have a full retirement age of 65. If you were born between those two periods your full retirement age fall somewhere in between.

Question 4

If you work after you start receiving full Social Security benefits?

(A) You will reduce your Social Security benefit by the amount of your earnings.	Correct Incorrect
(B) You will not have any reduction in your Social Security benefits.	Correct Incorrect
(C) Your benefits are reduced if you earn in excess of the annual earnings limit.	Correct Incorrect
(D) You will be ineligible to receive future Social Security benefits.	Correct Incorrect

Your "full retirement age" is the age at which you are eligible to receive your full retirement benefit. Depending on the year you were born, that will be somewhere between age 65 and 67. If you retire after 62 years of age and before your full retirement age, your benefits will be reduced based on the additional months of retirement benefits you will receive by retiring early.

Question 5

Which of the following people cannot collect retirement benefits?

(A) American Indians.	Correct Incorrect
(B) Individuals who are currently serving more than 30 continuous days in jail.	Correct Incorrect
(C) Members of Congress.	Correct Incorrect
(D) People who were self-employed prior to retirement.	Correct Incorrect

If a person is receiving Social Security benefits and goes to prison or jail, they are not eligible to receive benefits for any full calendar month that they are incarcerated. Additionally, retroactive payments for benefits due can also not be paid during the incarceration period.

Question 6

Assuming you have been married long enough to qualify, upon the death of your spouse, you can continue to receive the following social security benefit?

(A) Just your social security benefit.	Correct Incorrect
(B) Your benefit and your spouse's benefit.	Correct Incorrect
(C) Your benefit, and your spouse's benefit for one year after their death.	Correct Incorrect
(D) The higher of your own benefit, or your spouse's benefit, but not both.	Correct Incorrect

If you receive benefits as a widow or widower or surviving divorced spouse, you can receive your spouse´s benefit if it is higher than yours or your benefit if it is higher than your spouses. You are not eligible to receive both yours and your spouse´s benefits combined.

Question 7

Social security retirement benefits are taxed as follows?

(A) Social Security benefits are not taxed.	Correct Incorrect
(B) Based on your marginal tax bracket for your combined Social Security and other earnings.	Correct Incorrect
(C) 25%	Correct Incorrect
(D) 10%	Correct Incorrect

Some Social Security benefit recipients have to pay federal income taxes on their Social Security benefits. This only happens if you have substantial income in addition to your benefits. For individual filers, if you make combined income of between $25,000 and $34,000 you may have to pay income tax on up to 50 percent of your benefits and if you earn more than $34,000 up to 85 percent of your benefits may be taxable. For those filing a joint return, the limits are $32,000 and $44,000 for 50 percent of your benefits and $44,000 for 85 percent of your benefits. No one pays federal income tax on more than 85 percent of their Social Security benefits.

Question 8

Individuals are eligible to receive full social security retirement benefits at what age?

(A) 70	Correct Incorrect
(B) 65	Correct Incorrect
(C) 62	Correct Incorrect
(D) Varies based on the year that you were born.	Correct Incorrect

The age at which you can retire and still collect 100% of your full monthly retirement benefit depends on the year you were born. Individuals born from 1960 and later have a full retirement age of 67. Those born in 1937 and earlier have a full retirement age of 65. If you were born between those two periods your full retirement age fall somewhere in between.

Question 9

How much can you earn at age 62 without reducing your Social Security benefit?

(A) $39,500	Correct Incorrect
(B) $15,120	Correct Incorrect
(C) $72,500	Correct Incorrect
(D) $6,000	Correct Incorrect

If you are under full retirement age for the entire year, the Social Security Administration will deduct $1 from your benefit payments for every $2 you earn above the annual limit. For 2016, that limit is $15,720. In the year you reach full retirement age, the Social Security Administration will deduct $1 in benefits for every $3 you earn above a different limit. In 2016, the limit on your earnings is $41,880 but earnings are only counted for the month before you reach your full retirement age. When your reach full retirement age, your earnings will no longer be subject to a reduction in benefits, no matter how much you earn.

Question 10

You can receive an estimate of what your Social Security retirement benefits will be?

(A) Visiting the Social Security Administration website at sss.gov/estimator.	Correct Incorrect
(B) Dividing your last 25 years of earnings by 300.	Correct Incorrect
(C) Multiplying your Social Security taxes paid in the last year by the number of years you have worked.	Correct Incorrect
(D) None of the above.	Correct Incorrect

The Social Security Administration provides a Retirement Estimator that gives estimates based on your actual Social Security earnings records. But please keep in mind that these are just estimates. Actual benefits can only be stated once you actually apply for benefits.

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