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Social Security Full Retirement and Reductions* by Age No matter what your full retirement age is, you may start receiving benefits as early as age 62.
You can also retire at any time between age 62 and full retirement age. However, if you start at one of these early ages, your benefits are reduced a fraction of a percent for each month before your full retirement age. As a general rule, early retirement will give you about the same total Social Security benefits over your lifetime, but in smaller amounts to take into account the longer period you will receive them. Here's An Important Point: There are disadvantages and advantages to taking your benefit before your full retirement age. The advantage is that you collect benefits for a longer period of time. The disadvantage is that your benefit is permanently reduced. Each person's situation is different, so make sure you evaluate your overall financial needs and resources before you decide to retire. * Percentage monthly and total reductions are approximate due to rounding. The actual reductions are .555 or 5/9 of 1% per month for the first 36 months and .416 or 5/12 of 1% for subsequent months . |
