working past – With full retirement age typically around 67, staying employed longer can mean no earnings limits on Social Security, more time to grow retirement accounts, and potentially better long-term health outcomes—while also offering a strategy to boost future benefit
For many Americans, retirement isn’t a switch you flip. It’s a decision you revisit—sometimes because inflation doesn’t ease off, sometimes because the finances still don’t feel secure.
A new survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that 55% of Americans don’t feel prepared for retirement. That unease helps explain why so many older Americans keep working, whether for an employer or as their own boss.
For most Americans, full retirement age (FRA) is around 67—the point when you’ve earned full Social Security benefits. From there, staying on the job can change the math in a few important ways.
Once you’ve hit full retirement age, the earnings limit disappears. The early claim rules are stricter: the earliest you can claim Social Security is age 62. and claiming then permanently reduces your monthly benefits by 30%. There’s also a related catch for people who work between 62 and FRA—Social Security withholds part of their checks if earnings exceed a limit set by the Social Security Administration.
Working past FRA avoids that problem. After reaching FRA, you can earn as much as you want without anything being withheld from your Social Security checks.
That shift can matter immediately for household budgets, especially when inflation keeps pressuring costs.
There’s also more time on the clock for retirement savings. Whether you work for a company with an employer-sponsored retirement plan or you’re self-employed and use a solo 401(k), remaining employed after FRA can give you extra years to keep building your retirement account.
And beyond the money, the survey-backed argument extends to health. The reporting points to “increasing evidence” that working past FRA can help people maintain better health and even live longer. A 2016 study found that working even one year beyond retirement age is associated with a 9% to 11% lower risk of dying during an 18-year study.
For some retirees, there’s a second lever to pull—timing. Imagine you turn 67, claim Social Security, then later realize you could get by without it while you keep working. If it has been less than 12 months since you became eligible to claim. you can request that the Social Security Administration suspend your benefits until a later time.
You would have to pay back the money you received up to that point. But the logic is to trade an earlier benefit for delayed retirement credits. Once benefits stop. delayed credits start accumulating. and when benefits automatically restart at age 70 (or earlier. if you decide to restart them). your monthly check is higher than it would have been at 67. Waiting until age 70 is described as producing roughly a 24% higher benefit.
Not everyone wants to stay in the workforce past full retirement age. Still. for retirees who choose to keep working. the financial advantages are clear: no earnings limit on Social Security after FRA. additional income to help offset inflation’s impact. extra time to grow retirement savings—plus the prospect. supported by the cited research. that working longer may align with better long-term health outcomes.
Where that leaves you is a personal decision, shaped by health, income needs, and whether you want to revisit when—and how—you claim the benefits you’ve earned.
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