(over)

2023

Military Service and Social Security

Earnings for active duty military service or active 

duty training have been covered under Social 

Security since 1957.

If you served in the military before 1957, you 

didn’t pay Social Security taxes, but we gave you 

special credit for some of your service.

You can get both Social Security benefits and 

military retirement benefits. Generally, there is no 

reduction of Social Security benefits because of 

your military retirement benefits. You’ll get your 

Social Security benefit based on your earnings 

and the age you choose to start receiving benefits.

Social Security and Medicare taxes

While you’re in military service, you pay Social 

Security taxes, just as civilian employees do. You 

currently pay a 6.2% Social Security tax on up 

to $160,200 of your earnings. The Medicare tax 

rate is 1.45% on all wages. High-income earners 

pay an additional 0.9% on earnings above certain 

amounts.

How your work qualifies you for 

Social Security

To qualify for benefits, you must earn credits by 

working and paying Social Security taxes. The 

number of credits you need to qualify depends 

on your age and the type of benefit for which 

you’re eligible. In 2023, you receive one credit for 

each $1,640 of earnings, up to the maximum of 4 

credits per year. The amount of earnings needed 

to get credit for your work goes up each year. 

No one needs more than 10 years of work, or 40 

credits.

Extra earnings

Your Social Security benefit depends on your 

earnings, averaged over your working lifetime. 

Generally, the higher your earnings, the higher 

your benefit. Under certain circumstances, special 

earnings can be credited to your military pay 

record for Social Security purposes. The extra 

earnings are for periods of active duty or active 

duty for training. These extra earnings may help 

you qualify for Social Security or increase the 

amount of your Social Security benefit.

If you served in the military after 1956, you paid 

Social Security taxes on those earnings. Since 

1988, inactive duty service in the armed forces 

reserves (such as weekend drills) has also been 

covered by us.

Under certain circumstances, special extra earnings 

for periods of active duty from 1957 through 

2001 can also be credited to your Social Security 

earnings record. If you were on active duty:

• From 1957 through 1967, we will add the 

extra credits to your record when you apply for 

Social Security benefits.

• From 1968 through 2001, you don’t need to 

do anything to receive these extra credits. The 

credits were automatically added to your record.

• After 2001, there are no special extra earnings 

credits for military service.

The information that follows explains how 

you can get credit for special extra earnings. 

This applies only to active duty military service 

earnings from 1957 through 2001.

If you were on active duty from 1957 through 

1977, you’re credited with $300 in additional 

earnings for each calendar quarter in which you 

received active duty basic pay.

If you were on active duty from 1978 through 

2001, for every $300 in active duty basic pay, 

you’re credited with an additional $100 in earnings 

up to a maximum of $1,200 a year. If you enlisted 

after September 7, 1980, and didn’t complete at 

least 24 months of active duty or your full tour, you 

may not be able to receive the additional earnings. 

Check with us for details.

If you served in the military from 1940 through 

1956, you didn’t pay Social Security taxes, but we 

gave you special credit for some of your service.

SSA.gov Military Service and Social Security
NOTE: In all cases, the additional earnings are 

credited to the earnings that we average throughout 

your working lifetime, not directly to your monthly 

benefit amount.

Your benefits

In addition to retirement benefits, we pay survivors 

benefits to your family when you die. You also 

can get benefits for you and your family if you 

develop a disability. For more information about 

these benefits, read Understanding the Benefits

(Publication No. 05-10024).

If you developed a disability while on active duty 

military service on or after October 1, 2001, visit 

www.ssa.gov/woundedwarriors to find out how 

you can receive expedited processing of your 

disability claim.

When you apply for Social Security benefits, 

you’ll be asked for proof of your military service 

(DD Form 214) or information about your Reserve 

or National Guard service.

When you are eligible for Medicare

If you have health care insurance from the 

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or under the 

TRICARE or CHAMPVA program, your health 

benefits may change or end when you become 

eligible for Medicare. You should contact the VA, 

the Department of Defense, or a military health 

benefits advisor for more information.

You can work and get 

retirement benefits

You can retire as early as age 62. But if you do, 

your Social Security benefits will be permanently 

reduced. If you decide to apply for benefits before 

your full retirement age, you can work and still get 

some Social Security benefits. There are limits on 

how much you can earn without losing some or all 

your retirement benefits. These limits can change 

each year. When you apply for benefits, we’ll tell 

you what the limits are at that time and whether 

work will affect your monthly benefits.

When you reach your full retirement age, we 

will not withhold your Social Security benefits, 

no matter how much you earn. If some of your 

retirement benefits were withheld due to your 

earnings, we will recalculate your benefit amount 

to give you credit for the months we reduced or 

withheld benefits due to your excess earnings.

The full retirement age is 66 for people born from 

1943 through 1954, and it will gradually increase 

to age 67 for those born in 1960 and later. To 

help you decide the best time to retire, read 

Your Retirement Checklist (Publication No. 05-

10377).

Contacting Us

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; start or complete 

your request for an original or replacement 

Social Security card; get useful information; find 

publications; and get answers to frequently asked 

questions. 

When you open a personal my Social Security

account, you have more capabilities. You can 

review your Social Security Statement, verify 

your earnings, and get estimates of future 

benefits. You can also print a benefit verification 

letter, change your direct deposit information, 

request a replacement Medicare card, and get a 

replacement SSA-1099/1042S. Access to your 

personal my Social Security account may be 

limited for users outside the United States.

If you don’t have access to the internet, we offer 

many automated services by telephone, 24 hours 

a day, 7 days a week, so you may not need to 

speak with a representative.

If you need to speak with someone, call us 

toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 or at our TTY number, 

1-800-325-0778, if you’re deaf or hard of hearing. 

A member of our staff can answer your call from 

8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. We 

provide free interpreter services upon request. For 

quicker access to a representative, try calling early 

in the day (between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time) 

or later in the day. We are less busy later in the 

week (Wednesday to Friday) and later in the 

month.

Social Security Administration

Publication No. 05-10017

January 2023 (Recycle prior editions)

Military Service and Social Security

Produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense