{"id":6630,"date":"2015-09-01T07:39:55","date_gmt":"2015-09-01T12:39:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=6630"},"modified":"2015-08-25T13:54:20","modified_gmt":"2015-08-25T18:54:20","slug":"how-to-apply-for-social-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2015\/09\/how-to-apply-for-social-security\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Apply for Social Security"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>How to Apply for Social Security<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-6633\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2015\/08\/How-to-Apply-for-Social-Security-350x350.png\" alt=\"How to Apply for Social Security\" width=\"350\" height=\"350\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2015\/08\/How-to-Apply-for-Social-Security-350x350.png 350w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2015\/08\/How-to-Apply-for-Social-Security-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2015\/08\/How-to-Apply-for-Social-Security-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/img.prod.aplaceformom.com\/main\/uploads\/sa-blog\/2015\/08\/How-to-Apply-for-Social-Security.png 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ever since 1935 when Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act, workers in the United States have been paying a certain percentage of their income into the social security fund each year. The goal of social security is to ensure that when people reach an age where they can no longer reasonably work (or should, arguably, no longer have to), they have a financial security net to help them cover their needs in the remaining years of life.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Assuming your parents started working sometime after 1935, they\u2019ve been paying into social security their entire life. If you\u2019ve been worried about how to cover the costs of their care as they age, social security should offer some solace (although it won\u2019t cover everything).<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Who\u2019s Eligible for Social Security<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In order to apply for the social security retirement benefit, a person must be at least <strong>61 years and 9 months old<\/strong> (since 62 is the official minimum age to receive benefits, but you can apply a couple of months early). They\u2019ll also need to have worked for at least <strong>10 years<\/strong> in the United States \u2013 that\u2019s the amount of time it takes to earn the mandatory number of credits needed to start taking advantage of social security payments.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>How to Apply for Social Security<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Applying is simple. You will need the applicant\u2019s:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Original birth certificate<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Proof of U.S. citizenship<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A copy of their military service papers (if relevant)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A copy of either their W2 or tax return (if self-employed) from the last year<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With that information in hand, you can <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/secure.ssa.gov\/iClaim\/rib\" target=\"_blank\">fill out the online application<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in about 15 minutes. \u00a0You\u2019ll be instructed at the end where to submit the documents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019d prefer a method other than online, you can apply by phone by calling <strong>(800) 772-1213<\/strong> between 7 AM and 7 PM Monday through Friday. Or you can set up an appointment for your parent to apply in person at your local social security office, which you can <\/span><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ssa.gov\/locator\/\" target=\"_blank\">find the address for here<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Tips for Getting the Most out of Social Security<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Understanding how to make the most of your family\u2019s social security payments can get pretty complicated. One simple tip to know is that it\u2019s often best to wait. Someone who signs up to start receiving benefits at 62 will only be eligible for a portion of the payment available, yet that amount will stay consistent throughout the years benefits are paid out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Those that wait until 70 will be eligible for the full amount. For those that continue to work for years into their 60\u2019s, the amount they\u2019ll be eligible to earn will be higher than if they\u2019d taken retirement at the first moment it became available.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Where things get complicated is for those that are either married now or have been in the past. Whether or not it\u2019s best for an individual to take their own benefit or their spousal benefit, and which to take when varies based on the particular circumstances. We won\u2019t get into all the complicated nuances of the laws here, but you can find more details in <\/span><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/kotlikoff\/2012\/07\/03\/44-social-security-secrets-all-baby-boomers-and-millions-of-current-recipients-need-to-know\/\" target=\"_blank\">this Forbes article<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that can help you better understand what choice is best for your family.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between health care costs and all those random expenses we don\u2019t always think to account for, life often gets surprisingly expensive for seniors. Social security likely won\u2019t cover everything your parents need (it\u2019s good to have a healthy retirement account and insurance for the rest), but it will help offset some of the costs of life for seniors. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How to Apply for Social Security Ever since 1935 when Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act, workers in the United States have been paying a certain percentage of their income into the social security fund each year. The goal of social security is to ensure that when people reach an age where they can no longer reasonably work [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[200,29,162],"tags":[287,202],"class_list":{"0":"post-6630","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-families-caregivers","7":"category-caregiving","8":"category-retirement-planning","9":"tag-financial-assistance","10":"tag-social-security"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Apply for Social Security<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Social security can help cover the cost of care for your parents as they age. 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