How does the Windfall Elimination Provision affect Social Security benefits?

@cedrick.casper 

The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) is a law that affects the calculation of Social Security benefits for individuals who receive pensions from jobs where they did not pay into Social Security. The provision primarily affects individuals who have earned a pension from work not covered by Social Security, such as government employees, and who also have significant work experience in jobs covered by Social Security.

The WEP adjusts the formula used to calculate Social Security benefits for affected individuals. Without the provision, the benefit formula is progressive, meaning that it provides a higher replacement rate for lower-earning workers. However, the WEP modifies this formula for individuals who have contributed less to Social Security due to their pensions from non-covered work.

Under the WEP, a portion of the individual's pension is used to reduce the Social Security benefit amount. The reduction is applied on a sliding scale based on the number of years of substantial earnings in covered employment. The exact reduction is calculated based on a formula, which is subject to an annual limit that can change each year.

The result of the WEP is that affected individuals generally have a lower Social Security benefit amount compared to what they would have received without the provision. However, it is important to note that the WEP does not eliminate Social Security benefits entirely, but it reduces the benefit amount to account for other sources of income, such as non-covered pensions.

It is worth mentioning that the WEP only applies to individuals who receive pensions from work not covered by Social Security and also qualify for Social Security benefits on their own work history. It does not affect individuals who exclusively receive non-covered pensions or those who are eligible for Social Security benefits solely based on their spouse's work record.