databutler.dev · /facts — every fact · Verified Facts protocol · /.well-known/facts.json · /changes

Retirement earnings test exempt amount in 2026, years before the year of reaching full retirement age

24480 USD/year

2026, from 2026-01-01 · verified 2026-10-31 against the official source · next expected change 2027-01-01

2026 24,480 65,160. a Applies in years before the year of attaining NRA. We withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 of earnings in excess of the lower exempt amount.

key

us/social-security-benefits/earnings-test-lower

value

24480 USD/year

period

2026

effective

2026-01-01 to date

source

https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/rtea.html

verified

2026-10-31 — fresh (6 days ago; next check by 2026-11-01)

next expected change

2027-01-01 (annual: a fixed day each year)

previous

23400 USD/year (2025) from 2025-01-01

scope

Benefit rules read from ssa.gov in a browser (ssa.gov answers 403 to automated fetches); the taxation amounts are from IRS Publication 915 (2025), the latest edition. Keys ending -2027 hold SSA figures already published for 2027; unsuffixed keys hold the 2026 value.

hash

sha256:ecaf831f87b73147d3ed1ffd69ff6dcdfcb2bc15eb445bfc216bcab54263cc17

signature

EdDSA, key db-2026-10 — keys

As JSON

curl -s https://databutler.dev/f/us/social-security-benefits/earnings-test-lower?max_age=30d — schema; verify with npx verified-facts verify https://databutler.dev/f/us/social-security-benefits/earnings-test-lower

{
  "protocol": "verified-facts/0.3",
  "key": "us/social-security-benefits/earnings-test-lower",
  "label": "Retirement earnings test exempt amount in 2026, years before the year of reaching full retirement age",
  "value": 24480,
  "unit": "USD/year",
  "period": "2026",
  "effectiveFrom": "2026-01-01",
  "effectiveTo": null,
  "source": "https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/rtea.html",
  "quote": "2026 24,480 65,160. a Applies in years before the year of attaining NRA. We withhold $1 in benefits for every $2 of earnings in excess of the lower exempt amount.",
  "verifiedDate": "2026-10-31",
  "nextScheduledRefresh": "2026-11-01",
  "changeCadence": "annual",
  "nextExpectedChange": "2027-01-01",
  "status": "fresh",
  "ageDays": 6,
  "maxAgeDays": null,
  "previous": {
    "value": 23400,
    "period": "2025",
    "effectiveFrom": "2025-01-01",
    "source": "https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/rtea.html"
  },
  "scope": "Benefit rules read from ssa.gov in a browser (ssa.gov answers 403 to automated fetches); the taxation amounts are from IRS Publication 915 (2025), the latest edition. Keys ending -2027 hold SSA figures already published for 2027; unsuffixed keys hold the 2026 value.",
  "hash": "sha256:ecaf831f87b73147d3ed1ffd69ff6dcdfcb2bc15eb445bfc216bcab54263cc17",
  "signature": {
    "alg": "EdDSA",
    "kid": "db-2026-10",
    "jws": "eyJhbGciOiJFZERTQSIsImtpZCI6ImRiLTIwMjYtMTAifQ..vg0MypnbJjduAtg_rgk8Vhu2N3lof_PGxZydAQt_ygGs6LzQsGXNRKUgYlKjR2USE8qFhW-5lXhWZMvRCf3yAQ",
    "keys": "https://databutler.dev/.well-known/jwks.json"
  },
  "publisher": {
    "name": "Data Butler",
    "url": "https://databutler.dev/"
  },
  "cite": {
    "url": "https://databutler.dev/facts/us/social-security-benefits/earnings-test-lower",
    "text": "databutler.dev, verified 2026-10-31 against https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/rtea.html"
  }
}