Trends In Growth Of The Veteran And Social Security Beneficiary Populations
The overall Social Security beneficiary population more than doubled from 1968 through 2004, whereas the number of veterans receiving Social Security more than quadrupled .7 Consequently, the percentage of Social Security beneficiaries who have served in the military has approximately doubled since the late 1960s.
The percentage of Social Security beneficiaries who are military veterans has remained fairly steady over the past decade, after increasing drastically since 1968. In 2002, an estimated 9,457,000 veterans received Social Security. The estimated number decreased slightly to 9,420,000 in 2004, but this small difference may not be statistically significant. The estimated percentage of Social Security beneficiaries who are veterans has declined slightly from its all-time high of 25.0 percent in 1996.
If I Qualify For Va Disability Will I Automatically Qualify For Social Security Disability
No. You must qualify for each separately. Winning approval for one type of benefits does little to nothing to boost your chances of getting another.
If the VA grants you disability, it does not mean that an approval for Social Security Disability will follow, or vice versa. Remember, the VA system awards benefits for varying degrees of disability, while the SSA system makes a determination of disabled or not disabled.
If the SSA approves you for SSDI or SSI, you still must prove to the VA that your condition is service-connected, which is not an easy thing to do. Without sufficient evidence, the VA can call into question whether your medical condition arose as a result of an event in your military service or is otherwise related to your military service.
Note: If you have a Permanent and Total disability rating from the VA, you can receive expedited processing for an SSI or SSDI claim.
Helping Former Military Members Obtain Disability
If you are a disabled veteran who served in any branch of the United States military, you may be entitled to up to $2,700 in payments each month through the Social Security Disability Insurance program. These payments are in addition to the benefits you receive through the Department of Veterans Affairs . Klain & Associates can help you navigate the spectrum of benefits available to disabled veterans.
Schedule your FREE consultation with the disability attorneys and advocates at Klain & Associates today. 800-818-HELP. No Fee unless you win.
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Get Ssa Benefits While Living Abroad
U.S. citizens can travel to or live in most, but not all, foreign countries and still receive their Social Security benefits. You can find out if you can receive benefits overseas by using the Social Security Administrations payment verification tool. Once you access the tool, pick the country you’re visiting or living in from the drop-down menu options.
Avoid Garnishments That Reduce Your Benefits
As a general rule, Social Security benefits are protected from the majority of debt collection actions. This is not the case with back taxes, outstanding federal student loans, child support and alimony. If you have any of these debts lurking in your past, take the necessary steps to satisfy your debt obligations to protect your benefits from garnishments.
When you understand how your benefits work and what you can do to increase your Social Security paycheck. For many retirees this paycheck may be the only form of income they will receive during their retirement years. Whether Social Security is your only source of income or a supplement to other sources of income, it is important that you get the benefits to which you are entitled.
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How Military Service Affects Social Security Benefits
If you served in the military between 1940 and 2001, then you should be eligible for additional earnings credits, which should be factored into your lifetime earnings that are used to calculate your Social Security Benefits.
How much this will impact your Social Security Benefits will depend on when and how long you served in the military. We will break these down by service era, and follow up with additional tips on how you can increase your Social Security Income.
Am I Eligible For Veterans Pension Benefits
You may be eligible for the Veterans Pension program if you meet these requirements.
Both of these must be true:
- You didnt receive a dishonorable discharge, and
- Your yearly family income and net worth meet certain limits set by Congress. Your net worth includes all personal property you own , minus any debt you owe. Your net worth includes the net worth of your spouse.Find out about Veterans Pension rates
And at least one of these must be true about your service:
- You started on active duty before September 8, 1980, and you served at least 90 days on active duty with at least 1 day during wartime, or
- You started on active duty as an enlisted person after September 7, 1980, and served at least 24 months or the full period for which you were called or ordered to active duty with at least 1 day during wartime, or
- You were an officer and started on active duty after October 16, 1981, and you hadnt previously served on active duty for at least 24 months
And at least one of these must be true:
- Youre at least 65 years old, or
- You have a permanent and total disability, or
- Youre a patient in a nursing home for long-term care because of a disability, or
- Youre getting Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income
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Would Those Changes Fix The Programs Funding Shortfall
Expanding the payroll tax would boost the Social Security Administrations trust fund, ensuring its solvency through 2096, according to DeFazio.
Whether this bill moves forward or not, boosting payroll taxes in some fashion is viewed as a way to guarantee that current and future retirees dont lose benefits after 2035.
For instance, the Congressional Research Service said in a 2021 report that raising or eliminating the cap on wages that are subject to taxes could reduce the long-range deficit in the Social Security trust funds.
How To Get A Social Security Card
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How Do Benefits Work And How Can I Qualify
While you work, you pay Social Security taxes. This tax money goes into a trust fund that pays benefits to:
- Those who are currently retired
- To people with disabilities
- To the surviving spouses and children of workers who have died
Each year you work, youll get credits to help you become eligible for benefits when its time for you to retire. Find all the benefits Social Security Administration offers.
There are four main types of benefits that the SSA offers:
-
Learn about earning limits if you plan to work while receiving Social Security benefits
How To Stop Social Security Check Payments
The SSA can not pay benefits for the month of a recipients death. That means if the person died in July, the check received in August must be returned. Find out how to return a check to the SSA.
If the payment is by direct deposit, notify the financial institution as soon as possible so it can return any payments received after death. For more about the requirement to return benefits for the month of a beneficiarys death, see the top of page 11 of this SSA publication.
Family members may be eligible for Social Security survivors benefits when a person getting benefits dies. Visit the SSA’s Survivors Benefits page to learn more.
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Benefits Approval For Disabled Veterans
VA benefits are also known as compensation for a service-related disability. The VA only considers disabilities that resulted from military service. VA compensation is not based on income.
You are compensated on partial disability through the VA disability program. The SSA will not compensate for partial disability or partial loss of employability. In the past, another major difference in disability from the SSA and the VA involved the treating physician rule.
Up until March 27, 2017, the SSA gave extra weight to the treating physicians opinion. The VA, however, would review the claimants entire medical file, with no extra weight given to any specific evidence. After March 27, 2017, the SSA will not give deference to the opinions or records provided by the treating physician.
What Are Social Security Extra Earnings And Can I Get Them
According to the Social Security Administration, “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 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, they will add the extra credits to your record when you apply for Social Security benefits.
- From 1968 through 2001, you dont 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.
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If Your Active Military Service Occurred
From 1957 through 1967, SSA will add the extra credits to your record when you apply for Social Security disability benefits.From 1968 through 2001, you do not 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.
Do Veterans Get Extra Social Security Benefits
You may be wondering about additional Social Security benefits for veterans that may be available to you. Remember, veterans generally collect similar monthly amounts of SS benefits as civilians do. Depending on when you served, you may qualify to receive special credits that can increase your benefits. However, Congress eliminated this program in 2001. Therefore, if your military service took place after 2001, you cannot collect special credits.
In any case, keep in mind that you can collect Social Security special veterans benefits through the SSA if you are also receiving military retirement funds. You may be eligible to receive additional retirement support because you draw from two sources.
This site is not affiliated with the SSA or any other government services.
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Special Veterans Benefits: Who Qualifies
There are 9.4 million military veterans receiving Social Security benefits, which means that almost one out of every four adult Social Security beneficiaries has served in the United States. Two out of every five recipients either are veterans or reside with family members who are veterans. Veteran recipients are overwhelmingly male compared with all adult Social Security beneficiaries who are more evenly split between males and females. Fourteen percent of veterans receiving Social Security benefits have income below 150 percent of poverty, while 25 percent of all adult Social Security beneficiaries are below this level. Military veterans constitute an important subgroup of beneficiaries of the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program. The number of veterans who receive Social Security benefits grew steadily from the late 1960s through the mid-1990s but has since leveled off.
What Special Social Security Benefits Do Veterans Receive
Its a little-known fact, but earnings for active duty military service or active duty training are covered under Social Security and have been since 1957. One of the special benefits military members receive is that it is possible to receive both Social Security benefits and military retirement benefits.
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According to the Social Security Administration, there is generally no reduction of Social Security benefits because one receives military retirement benefits, as well. This means you can receive two benefit checks at the same time each month. You will receive your Social Security benefit based on your earnings and the age you begin to start receiving benefits just like everyone else.
The SSA states that under certain circumstances, special earnings can be credited to your military pay record for Social Security purposes. Those extra earnings are for periods of active duty or active duty for training. These extra earnings may help you qualify for Social Security or actually increase the amount of your Social Security benefit.
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All service members will be required to show DD Form 214 as proof of military service when applying for Social Security benefits.
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Ethnicity And Geographic Distribution
Vietnam veterans were more likely than nonveterans to be White and less likely to be Hispanic. Roughly equal percentages of veterans and nonveterans were Black. However, a slightly larger share of Black men than White men joined the enlisted ranks in the early 1970s.14 Like veterans of other eras, Vietnam veterans have tended to live and retire in the South, where large active-duty populations are located. Only a small share of all men, both Vietnam veterans and nonveterans, lived in rural communities.
We Are With Those Who Need A Helping Hand
The Supplemental Security Income program is a program that provides income support to people with disabilities, people age 65 or older, or blind, who have low income and resources. U.S. Treasury general funds, not the Social Security trust funds, pay for SSI.
If you or someone you know may be eligible for SSI, visit to learn more and apply.
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Early Withdrawals From Your Tsp And Ira After The Military
About Ryan Guina
Ryan Guina is The Military Wallets founder. He is a writer, small business owner, and entrepreneur. He served over six years on active duty in the USAF and is a current member of the Illinois Air National Guard.
Ryan started The Military Wallet in 2007 after separating from active duty military service and has been writing about financial, small business, and military benefits topics since then. He also writes about personal finance and investing at Cash Money Life.
Ryan uses Personal Capital to track and manage his finances. Personal Capital is a free software program that allows him to track his net worth, balance his investment portfolio, track his income and expenses, and much more. You can open a free Personal Capital account here.
Featured In: Ryans writing has been featured in the following publications: Forbes, Military.com, US News & World Report, Yahoo Finance, Reserve & National Guard Magazine , Military Influencer Magazine, Cash Money Life, The Military Guide, USAA, Go Banking Rates, and many other publications.
A Lifetime Of Security
We are with you from day one when your parents named you, and when you named your children. Most parents apply for their childs Social Security number at birth, usually through the hospital. When the time comes for your childs first job, the number is already in place.
A fun bonus of assigning Social Security numbers at birth is that we know the most popular baby names, which we announce each year. On our website, you can find the top baby names for the last 100 years.
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Cbos Adjusted Sample Compared With Data From The Acs And The Irs 2018
Source: Congressional Budget Office, using data from the ACS and the IRSs Statistics of Income2017 Individual Income Tax Return.
The ACS data understates retirement-plan income because many people fail to report it. CBOs sample includes retirement-plan income both for those who reported such income and those to whom CBO imputed income. The IRSs taxable and aggregate income figures do not include distributions to people who did not file returns. The IRSs aggregate income figure includes distributions such as direct rollovers and conversions, which move money from one tax-preferred retirement plan to another.
ACS = American Community Survey IRS = Internal Revenue Service.
a. The IRS publishes taxable income and aggregate income from retirement plans annually in its Statistics of Income2017 Individual Income Tax Return. Because the IRS data for 2018 had not been published when CBO began its analysis, the agency projected taxable and aggregate income from retirement plans for that year by using IRS data from 2007 to 2017. To make the IRS data more comparable to data reported in the ACS, CBO averaged its projection with IRS data from 2017.
2.See C. Adam Bee and Joshua W. Mitchell, Do Older Americans Have More Income Than We Think? Working Paper SEHSD-WP2017-39 , .
10.CBO referred to the SOI taxable amount as the sum of the taxable SOI components, and the SOI total amount as the sum of all the taxable and non-taxable components.