{"id":292406,"date":"2026-10-29T12:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T16:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/?p=292406"},"modified":"2026-10-29T12:20:00","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T16:20:00","slug":"full-retirement-age-67-born-1960-2027","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/full-retirement-age-67-born-1960-2027\/","title":{"rendered":"Three things change for Americans born in 1960 as they reach full retirement age in 2027"},"content":{"rendered":"

2027 is a milestone year for Social Security.<\/strong> Americans born in 1960<\/strong> will turn 67, and with them the full retirement age (FRA)<\/strong> reaches its final step. From now on, everyone born in 1960 or later has the same FRA: 67<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The change was approved by Congress back in 1983 and phased in over four decades. For the first generation to fully live under it, three things matter: how much they lose by claiming early, how much they gain by waiting and what happens if they keep working. We break it down.<\/p>\n

What is the full retirement age?<\/h2>\n

The FRA is the age at which you can collect 100% of your Social Security retirement benefit<\/strong>, known as your primary insurance amount. It does not mean you have to stop working or that you must claim at that moment.<\/p>\n

For people born in 1959, the FRA was 66 and 10 months. For those born in 1960 or later, it is 67. Unless Congress changes the law, this will remain the rule for younger workers. You can see how this affects the largest possible checks in our article on the maximum Social Security benefit in 2027<\/a>.<\/p>\n

1. Claiming at 62 now means a 30% cut<\/h2>\n

You can still start retirement benefits at 62<\/strong>, but the reduction is larger than it was for older generations. With an FRA of 67, claiming at 62 gives you 70% of your full benefit<\/strong>, a permanent cut of 30%.<\/p>\n

The reduction also affects spouses. A spouse who claims at 62 receives about 32.5%<\/strong> of the worker’s full benefit instead of the 50% available at full retirement age. For couples, the timing of each claim can change the household budget for decades, as we explained when we looked at what retired couples receive in 2027<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2. Waiting until 70 pays 24% more<\/h2>\n

If you delay your claim past 67, Social Security adds delayed retirement credits of 8% a year<\/strong>. Waiting until 70 means a monthly check equal to 124% of your full benefit<\/strong>, for life. There is no extra credit for waiting beyond 70.<\/p>\n

The difference between claiming at 62 and at 70 is large. For someone whose full benefit is $2,000, the check would be about $1,400 at 62<\/strong>, $2,000 at 67<\/strong> and $2,480 at 70<\/strong>, before cost-of-living adjustments.<\/p>\n

3. The earnings limit disappears at 67<\/h2>\n

If you claim before your FRA and keep working, Social Security may temporarily withhold part of your benefits<\/strong> if your earnings go over an annual limit. In the year you reach full retirement age, a higher limit applies and only earnings before your birthday month count.<\/p>\n

Once you turn 67, the earnings test no longer applies<\/strong>. You can earn any amount without losing benefits, and the SSA recalculates your check to give you credit for the months that were withheld. The 2027 thresholds are detailed in our guide to the Social Security earnings test in 2027<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Does the 2027 COLA apply if you have not claimed yet?<\/h2>\n

Yes. Cost-of-living adjustments are applied to your benefit from the year you turn 62, even if you have not started collecting. That means people born in 1960 already benefit from the 3.6% COLA<\/strong> announced for 2027, whenever they decide to claim.<\/p>\n

Medicare does not follow the same rule<\/h2>\n

A common mistake is to assume Medicare also starts at 67. It does not: Medicare eligibility begins at 65<\/strong>. If you are not collecting Social Security yet, you need to sign up yourself during your initial enrollment period, which starts three months before the month you turn 65.<\/p>\n

How to decide when to claim<\/h2>\n

There is no single right answer. Your health, savings, marital status and whether you plan to keep working all matter. The SSA recommends reviewing your earnings record and your estimated benefits at different ages in your my Social Security account before making a decision, since the choice is generally permanent<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Social Security\u2019s full retirement age reaches 67 for everyone born in 1960 or later. Here is what it means for your check.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":292405,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[10,2],"class_list":["post-292406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance","tag-retirement","tag-social-security"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=292406"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":292410,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292406\/revisions\/292410"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/292405"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=292406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=292406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tododisca.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=292406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}