Full Retirement Age Calculator

Full Retirement Age Calculator

function calculateFRA() { var birthYearInput = document.getElementById("birthYear").value; var birthYear = parseInt(birthYearInput); if (isNaN(birthYear) || birthYear new Date().getFullYear()) { document.getElementById("fraResult").innerHTML = "Please enter a valid birth year (e.g., 1965)."; return; } var fraYears; var fraMonths; if (birthYear = 1943 && birthYear = 1960) { fraYears = 67; fraMonths = 0; } else { document.getElementById("fraResult").innerHTML = "Unable to determine FRA for the given birth year."; return; } var resultText = "Your Full Retirement Age is " + fraYears + " years and " + fraMonths + " months."; document.getElementById("fraResult").innerHTML = resultText; }

Understanding Your Full Retirement Age (FRA)

Your Full Retirement Age (FRA) is a crucial number for anyone planning their retirement, especially when it comes to Social Security benefits. It's the age at which you become eligible to receive 100% of your primary Social Security benefit amount, as determined by the Social Security Administration (SSA).

Why is FRA Important?

Knowing your FRA helps you make informed decisions about when to claim your Social Security benefits:

• Claiming Early: You can start receiving Social Security benefits as early as age 62. However, if you claim before your FRA, your monthly benefit will be permanently reduced. The reduction can be significant, up to 30% if you claim at age 62.
• Claiming at FRA: If you wait until your FRA, you'll receive your full, unreduced monthly benefit.
• Claiming Later: For every year you delay claiming benefits past your FRA (up to age 70), your monthly benefit will increase by a certain percentage, known as "delayed retirement credits." This can result in a substantially higher monthly payment for the rest of your life.

How is FRA Determined?

Your Full Retirement Age is not a universal age; it depends entirely on your birth year. The Social Security Administration has a graduated scale that gradually increased the FRA from 65 to 67 over several decades. This calculator uses the official SSA schedule to determine your specific FRA.

Using the Full Retirement Age Calculator

Our Full Retirement Age Calculator simplifies the process of finding your FRA. Simply enter your birth year into the designated field and click "Calculate Full Retirement Age." The calculator will instantly display your FRA in years and months, based on the latest Social Security Administration guidelines.

Example Scenarios:

• If you were born in 1950: Your Full Retirement Age is 66 years and 0 months.
• If you were born in 1957: Your Full Retirement Age is 66 years and 6 months.
• If you were born in 1960 or later: Your Full Retirement Age is 67 years and 0 months.

Understanding your FRA is a foundational step in creating a robust retirement plan. Use this calculator to quickly find your age and then explore how different claiming strategies might impact your financial future.