dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

How Well Can You Do on the Social Security Knowledge Quiz?
Monday, May 22, 2023

The Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company has released its annual Social Security retirement benefits quiz results where 1,500 Americans nearing retirement age (55-65) but have not started receiving Social Security benefits answer true or false questions about the program. 35% of respondents failed, another 34% got a D on the quiz, and only 31% could get a C or better. The quiz is based on 13 true or false questions ranging from retirement age to taxation of benefits. How would you do on this true/false quiz? Don't peek at the answers.



1. In most cases, if I take benefits before my full retirement age, they will be reduced for early filing.

True

False


2. If I am receiving benefits before my full retirement age and continue to work, my benefits might be reduced based on how much I make.

True

False


3. If I have a spouse, he or she can receive benefits from my record even if he or she has no individual earnings history.

True

False


4. Generally, if I am in a same-sex marriage, there are different eligibility requirements when it comes to Social Security retirement benefits.

True

False


5. If I have a spouse and he or she passes away, I will receive both my full benefit and my deceased spouse's full benefit.

True

False


6. If I file for retirement benefits and have dependent children aged 18 or younger, they also may qualify for Social Security benefits.

True

False


7. The money that comes out of my paycheck for Social Security goes into a specific account for me and remains there, earning interest, until I begin to receive Social Security benefits.

True

False


8. If I get divorced, I might be able to collect Social Security benefits based on my ex-spouse's Social Security earnings history.

True

False


9. Under current Social Security law, the full retirement age is 65 no matter when you were born.

True

False


10. Under current law, Social Security benefits could be reduced by 20% or more for everyone by 2035.

True

False


11. If I delay taking Social Security benefits past the age of 70, I will continue to get delayed retirement credit increases each year I wait.

True

False


12. Social Security retirement benefits are subject to income tax just like withdrawals from a traditional IRA account.

True

False


13. I must be a U.S. citizen to collect Social Security retirement benefits.

True

False




Answer Key:

(1)T,
1/1 point
True! (84% answered correctly): For every month prior to full retirement age, your benefits are reduced by 5/9 of one percent for up to 36 months, then benefits are reduced by 5/12 of one percent for each of the next 24 months of early retirement.

(2)T,
1/1 point
True! (77% answered correctly): If you earn more than $21,240 in wage income while receiving early retirement benefits, your benefits are reduced (if you reach full retirement age this year, the earnings limit is $56,520). The Social Security Earnings Test negatively impacts seniors willing to work jobs after retirement from their careers.

(3)T,
1/1 point
True! (72% answered correctly): A non-working spouse can collect up to 50 percent of the working spouse’s benefit at full retirement age, but it is reduced if the non-working spouse is not yet at FRA. In this case, the working spouse must be already collecting benefits.

(4)F,
1/1 point
False! (69% answered correctly): Social Security has no differentiation between the sexes of either spouse.

(5)F,
1/1 point
False! (65% answered correctly): Under current law, the surviving spouse receives the higher of the two benefits received by the couple.

(6)T,
1/1 point
True! (56% answered correctly): Unmarried minor children under the age of 18 (or 19 if still in high school) may be eligible for benefits based on the primary beneficiary’s record, as may a disabled adult child. If the minor child is employed, their benefits are subject to the Social Security earnings test.

(7)F,
1/1 point
False! (60% answered correctly): All Social Security taxes are paid into the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund. Benefits are then paid out of the trust fund, with any excess turned into special Treasury bonds receiving interest. Since 2021, payable benefits have exceeded revenues, and bonds are being redeemed, drawing down the value of the trust fund.

(8)T,
1/1 point
True! (56% answered correctly): Unmarried divorced spouses aged 62 or older can collect benefits on a qualified ex-spouse’s work record, if the marriage lasted more than 10 years and if the benefit they’re entitled to receive on their own work record is less.

(9)F,
1/1 point
False! (53% answered correctly): For those born after 1943, the retirement age has increased to 66, and for those born after 1960, the retirement age has increased to 67. One of the commonly proposed fixes to the Social Security solvency crisis is gradually increasing the retirement age for younger generations not near retirement to age 70.

(10)T,
1/1 point
True! (55% answered correctly): The most recent estimates released by the Congressional Budget Office and the Social Security Trustees Report show the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund being depleted in 2033 and all retirement beneficiaries receiving a 23% cut in benefits if nothing is done to guarantee the program.

(11)F,
1/1 point
False! (49% answered correctly): Under current law, the Delayed Retirement Credit allows a future beneficiary to increase their monthly benefits by 8% for each year they delay retirement until they turn age 70.

(12)F,
1/1 point
False! (38% answered correctly): This is a very nuanced question; while Social Security benefits are not subject to deferred taxes like a traditional IRA, taxes can be owed on some benefits based on how much the retiree earns from virtually all other income sources. Under current law, for any individual making over $25,000 or a couple earning over $32,000, 50% of Social Security benefits are taxed as income. If earnings increase to $34,000 per individual or $44,000 per couple, 85% of benefits are taxed. These thresholds have never been indexed for inflation, and now over half of all retired households pay income taxes on some portion of their Social Security benefits.

(13)F.
1/1 point
False! Non-U.S. citizens with verified legal immigration status, a valid Social Security number, and the minimum number of qualifying work credits can receive Social Security retirement benefits based on the wages earned while working in the United States. I*****l i*******ts are not eligible for Social Security benefits, even if they have paid Social Security taxes.

LogicallyRight Loc: Chicago

I missed only one, about minor children benefits, which I don't have.

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

No doubt, informed conservatives on OPP will score higher than the average results.

LostAggie66 Loc: Corpus Christi, TX (Shire of Seawinds)

7/13 (Missed 3-7-9-10-11-12)

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

I believe we have found an honest person.

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

I think my score was about 50% as well, was keeping track but then got to the one about spouse and 50% amount and lost it.. One would think much better score would be automatic..

Been on this for near 2 decades now and wife not far behind.. all her time she has received an amount based on her working quarters.. that is somewhat less then 50% of what I get.. so now I have to ponder, has been getting less then the rightful amount? How can I find out for sure? Who should I yank a chain on? so, this week, I shall have to figure out the question and the remedy if any..

Durn it. no rest for the wicked..

LostAggie66 Loc: Corpus Christi, TX (Shire of Seawinds)

Thanks tucker. I did not know a lot about the last 5 I missed. I took that intelligent guess on those They sounded right for the choices I made.