Claiming Social Security early gets you more checks from the program, but it often results in reducing the total benefits you collect over your lifetime. Applying as soon as possible at 62 can shrink your monthly check by up to 30% (compared to what you’re eligible for at full retirement age).
Not everyone realizes this before they sign up, and that can lead to major regret. There are ways to undo an early claim, but they have their drawbacks too. Here’s what you need to know.
If you change your mind within the first year of claiming
The Social Security Administration gives you a one-time do-over if you change your mind about claiming Social Security benefits within 12 months of signing up. You must contact the Social Security Administration and request that it withdraw your application. Then, you must also pay back any benefits you or other family members claiming on your record have received from the program thus far.
If you’re able to do this, the government will treat it as though you never applied for benefits. When you sign up later, your checks will be larger, and this could increase your lifetime Social Security benefit.
But for most people, paying back all the benefits they’ve already received and likely spent isn’t possible. Even if you can do this, it’s not an option after you’ve been on Social Security for over a year. That said, there’s still another way early claimers who regret their choice can boost their checks.
