I would like to retire at age 62 and buy 5 years and start collecting SS payments for my full retirement age of 66 and 8 months. Employees who work in school systems around the country can do this so why doesn't SSA allow this?

Hi,

The Social Security Administration (SSA) doesn't allow voluntary contributions because the Social Security Act that was passed into law by Congress doesn't permit it. SSA only enforces and administers the laws passed by Congress, and only Congress has the power to enact and amend Social Security law and regulations. I can't explain the reasoning that the representatives in Congress used when deciding on the various provisions they chose to add or omit from the law, but any suggestions that you may have for changes in the law would be best directed to the offices of your representatives in Congress.

Just to clarify, though, there is nothing in the Social Security law that would prevent you from retiring at age 62 and waiting until full retirement age (FRA) to claim benefits. What you can't do is make voluntary contributions to try to increase your benefit rate or be credited with quarters of coverage (QC) needed for insured status. If you have at least 40 QCs and are thus insured for benefits, your Social Security retirement benefit rate will be based on an average of your highest 35 years of Social Security covered wage-indexed earnings.

You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze the options available to you in order to determine your best strategy for maximizing benefits.

Best, Jerry