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Are you thinking of retiring soon? Perhaps earlier than you had planned years ago? A potential hurdle could be the incentives set up by the Social Security Administration - they calculate your benefits to reward you for staying in the workforce.
But if you are looking to take an early retirement, you're not alone.
SEE MORE What If I Retired Today?
In the first 15 months of the COVID pandemic (March 2020-May 2021), about 2.5 million Americans retired. That was about twice the number of people who retired in 2019. This means there were essentially 1.2 million fewer people in the workforce over the age of 55 than would otherwise be expected.
First, find out what Social Security benefits you can expect
For anyone born in 1943 or later, your full retirement age, as defined by the Social Security Administration, is between age 66 and 67, based on your birth year. If you're contemplating retiring before that, it's important to know that the Social Security program has been orchestrated to incentivize beneficiaries to delay claiming benefits. Specifically:
If you start taking benefits at age 62, your Retirement Benefit will shrink by 25% to 30%, depending on your birth year. That's because your lifetime annual benefits are decreased by approximately 8% for each year prior to your full retirement age you start to claim them.Conversely, your lifetime annual benefits increase by 8% for each year past your full retirement year if
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Under our country's "pay as you go" tax system, Uncle Sam wants to collect his cut periodically throughout the year as you earn income. In most cases, the required taxes are paid through paycheck withholding (your employer sends in the payments). But if you're self-employed, have a side gig, or don't have taxes withheld from other sources of taxable income (e.g., interest, dividends or capital gains), then quarterly estimated tax payments to the IRS are typically required.
SEE MORE 2022 Tax Calendar: Important Tax Due Dates and Deadlines
Estimated taxes are paid in four equal installments — generally, one installment for each quarter of the year. The first payment for the 2022 tax year was due on April 18, 2022, while the second payment was due June 15. The third 2022 estimated tax payment, which is for income earned from June 1 to August 31, is due on September 15, 2022 (that's tomorrow!).
Also, unless you live in a state with no income tax, you might owe state estimated taxes, too. Check with the state tax agency where you live for state estimate tax payment due dates.
Disaster Victims Get More Time to Pay Estimated Taxes
People and businesses impacted by certain natural disasters are typically given more time to file federal tax returns and pay federal taxes. This includes extensions for making estimated tax payments. For the third estimated tax payment for the 2022 tax year, victims o
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