(over)

2019

Military Service and Social Security

Earnings for active duty military service or active duty 

training have been covered under Social Security 

since 1957.

Social Security has covered inactive duty service in 

the armed forces reserves (such as weekend drills) 

since 1988.

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. Generally, there is no reduction of Social 

Security benefits because of your military retirement 

benefits. You’ll get your full Social Security benefit 

based on your earnings.

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 percent Social Security tax on 

up to $132,900 of your earnings. The Medicare tax 

rate is 1.45 percent on all wages, and high-income 

earners pay an additional 0.9 percent 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 2019, you’ll receive four credits if you earn 

at least $5,440. The minimum amount of earnings 

needed to get credit for your work goes up each year. 

The maximum number of credits you can earn in one 

year is four. 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 

Social Security 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 

Social Security.

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.

• 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 and applies only 

to active duty military service earnings from 1957 

through 2001.

• From 1957 through 1977, you’re credited with 

$300 in additional earnings for each calendar 

quarter in which you received active duty basic pay.

• 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 Social Security for details.

If you served in the military from 1940 through 

1956, including attendance at a service academy, 

you didn’t pay Social Security taxes. However, your 

Social Security record may be credited with $160 a 

month in earnings for military service from September 

16, 1940, through December 31, 1956, under the 

following circumstances:

SocialSecurity.gov Military Service and Social Security
• You were honorably discharged after 90 or more 

days of service, or you were released because of 

a disability or injury received in the line of duty; or

• You’re still on active duty; or

• You’re applying for survivors benefits and the 

veteran died while on active duty.

You can’t receive credit for these special earnings if 

you’re already receiving a federal benefit based on 

the same years of service. There is one exception: If 

you were on active duty after 1956, you can still get 

the special earnings for 1951 through 1956, even 

if you’re receiving a military retirement based on 

service during that period.

These extra earnings credits are added to your 

earnings record when you apply for Social 

Security benefits.

NOTE: In all cases, the additional earnings are credited 

to the earnings that we average over your working 

lifetime, not directly to your monthly benefit amount.

Your benefits

In addition to retirement benefits, Social Security 

pays survivors benefits to your family when you die. 

You also can get Social Security benefits for you 

and your family if you become disabled. For more 

information about these benefits, read Understanding 

the Benefits (Publication No. 05-10024).

If you became disabled while on active military 

service on or after October 1, 2001, visit 

www.socialsecurity.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 reduced and won’t be 

increased when you reach full retirement age. 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 of 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, you can 

earn as much as you are able and still get all of your 

Social Security benefits.

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 Retirement 

Benefits (Publication No. 05-10035).

Contacting Social Security

The most convenient way to contact us anytime, 

anywhere is to visit www.socialsecurity.gov. 

There, you can: apply for benefits; open a 

my Social Security account, which you can use 

to review your Social Security Statement, verify 

your earnings, print a benefit verification letter, 

change your direct deposit information, request a 

replacement Medicare card, and get a replacement 

SSA-1099/1042S; obtain valuable information; 

find publications; get answers to frequently asked 

questions; and much more.

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

offer many automated services by telephone, 

24 hours a day, 7 days a week. 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. 

If you need to speak to a person, we can answer your 

calls from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

We ask for your patience during busy periods since 

you may experience a higher than usual rate of busy 

signals and longer hold times to speak to us. We look 

forward to serving you. 

Social Security Administration

Publication No. 05-10017 | ICN 451475 | Unit of Issue — HD (one hundred)

January 2019 (Recycle prior editions)

Military Service and Social Security

Produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense

Printed on recycled paper