(over)

2022

Windfall Elimination Provision

Your Social Security retirement or 

disability benefits can be reduced

The Windfall Elimination Provision can affect how we 

calculate your retirement or disability benefit. If you work 

for an employer who doesn’t withhold Social Security 

taxes from your salary, any retirement or disability 

pension you get from that work can reduce your 

Social Security benefits. Such an employer may be a 

government agency or an employer in another country.

When your benefits can be affected

This provision can affect you if both the following 

are true:

• You earn a retirement or disability pension from an 

employer who didn’t withhold Social Security taxes.

• You qualify for Social Security retirement or disability 

benefits from work in other jobs for which you did 

pay taxes.

The Windfall Elimination Provision can apply if one of 

the following is true:

• You reached age 62 after 1985.

• You developed a qualifying disability after 1985.

If the latter applies, you must first have become eligible 

for a monthly pension based on work where you didn’t 

pay Social Security taxes after 1985. This rule applies 

even if you’re still working.

This provision also affects Social Security benefits 

for people who performed federal service under the 

Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) after 1956. 

We won’t reduce your Social Security benefit amount 

if you only performed federal service under a system 

such as the Federal Employees’ Retirement System 

(FERS). Social Security taxes are withheld for workers 

under FERS.

How it works

Social Security benefits are intended to replace only 

some of a worker’s pre-retirement earnings.

We base your Social Security benefit on your average 

monthly earnings adjusted for average wage growth. 

We separate your average earnings into three amounts 

and multiply the amounts using three factors to compute 

your full Primary Insurance Amount (PIA). For example, 

for a worker who turns 62 in 2022, the first $1,024 

of average monthly earnings is multiplied by 90%; 

earnings between $1,024 and $6,172 are multiplied by 

32%; and the balance by 15%. The sum of the three 

amounts equals the PIA, which is then decreased or 

increased depending on whether the worker starts 

benefits before or after full retirement age (FRA). This 

formula produces the monthly payment amount.

When we apply this formula, the percentage of career 

average earnings paid to lower-paid workers is greater 

than higher-paid workers. For example, workers age 

62 in 2022, with average earnings of $3,000 per month 

could receive a benefit at FRA of $1,553 (approximately 

51%) of their pre-retirement earnings increased by 

applicable cost of living adjustments (COLAs). For a 

worker with average earnings of $8,000 per month, the 

benefit starting at FRA could be $2,843 (approximately 

35%) plus COLAs. However, if either of these workers 

start benefits earlier than their FRA, we’ll reduce their 

monthly benefit.

Why we use a different formula

Before 1983, people whose primary job wasn’t 

covered by Social Security had their Social Security 

benefits calculated as if they were long-term, low-wage 

workers. They had the advantage of receiving a Social 

Security benefit representing a higher percentage of 

their earnings. Also they had a pension from a job for 

which they didn’t pay Social Security taxes. Congress 

passed the Windfall Elimination Provision to remove 

that advantage.

Under the provision, we reduce the 90% factor in our 

formula and phase it in for workers who reached age 62 

or developed a disability between 1986 and 1989. For 

people who reach 62 or developed a disability in 1990 

or later, we reduce the 90% factor to as little as 40%.

Some exceptions

The Windfall Elimination Provision doesn’t apply if:

• You’re a federal worker first hired after 

December 31, 1983.

• You’re an employee of a non-profit organization 

who was exempt from Social Security coverage 

on December 31,1983. This does not apply if the 

non-profit organization waived exemption and did 

pay Social Security taxes, but then the waiver was 

terminated prior to December 31, 1983.

• Your only pension is for railroad employment.

SSA.gov Windfall Elimination Provision
• The only work you performed for which you didn’t pay 

Social Security taxes was before 1957.

• You have 30 or more years of substantial earnings 

under Social Security.

The Windfall Elimination Provision doesn’t apply to 

survivors benefits. We may reduce spouses, widows, 

or widowers benefits because of another law. For 

more information, read Government Pension Offset

(Publication No. 05-10007).

Social Security years of substantial earnings

If you have 30 or more years of substantial earnings, 

we don’t reduce the standard 90% factor in our formula. 

See the first table that lists substantial earnings for 

each year.

The second table shows the percentage used to 

reduce the 90% factor depending on the number 

of years of substantial earnings. If you have 21 to 

29 years of substantial earnings, we reduce the 

90% factor to between 45% and 85%. To see the 

maximum amount we could reduce your benefit, visit 

www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/wep.html.

A guarantee

The law protects you if you get a low pension. We 

won’t reduce your Social Security benefit by more than 

half of your pension for earnings after 1956 on which 

you didn’t pay Social Security taxes.

Contacting Social Security

The most convenient way to do business with us is 

to visit www.ssa.gov to get information and use our 

online services. There are several things you can 

do online: apply for benefits; get useful information; 

find publications; and get answers to frequently 

asked questions.

Or, you can call us toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 or 

at 1-800-325-0778 (TTY) if you’re deaf or hard of 

hearing. We can answer your call from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., 

weekdays. You can also use our automated services 

via telephone, 24 hours a day, so you do not need to 

speak with a representative. Wait times to speak to 

a representative are typically shorter Wednesdays 

through Fridays or later in the day.

Year Substantial earnings

1937–1954 $900

1955–1958 $1,050

1959–1965 $1,200

1966–1967 $1,650

1968–1971 $1,950

1972 $2,250

1973 $2,700

1974 $3,300

1975 $3,525

1976 $3,825

1977 $4,125

1978 $4,425

1979 $4,725

1980 $5,100

1981 $5,550

1982 $6,075

1983 $6,675

1984 $7,050

1985 $7,425

1986 $7,875

1987 $8,175

1988 $8,400

1989 $8,925

Year Substantial earnings

1990 $9,525

1991 $9,900

1992 $10,350

1993 $10,725

1994 $11,250

1995 $11,325

1996 $11,625

1997 $12,150

1998 $12,675

1999 $13,425

2000 $14,175

2001 $14,925

2002 $15,750

2003 $16,125

2004 $16,275

2005 $16,725

2006 $17,475

2007 $18,150

2008 $18,975

2009–2011 $19,800

2012 $20,475

2013 $21,075

2014 $21,750

Year Substantial earnings

2015–2016 $22,050

2017 $23,625

2018 $23,850

2019 $24,675

2020 $25,575

2021 $26,550

2022 $27,300

Years of substantial

earnings Percentage

30 or more 90 percent

29 85 percent

28 80 percent

27 75 percent

26 70 percent

25 65 percent

24 60 percent

23 55 percent

22 50 percent

21 45 percent

20 or less 40 percent

Social Security Administration

Publication No. 05-10045

January 2022 (Recycle prior editions)

Windfall Elimination Provision

Produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense