Retiring with a pension and Social Security: What you need to know

The Social Security Fairness Act: Repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset

The Social Security Fairness Act increased the Social Security benefits of certain recipients by repealing 2 laws that previously reduced or eliminated Social Security payments for those individuals. Before the act was signed into law, those who received a noncovered pension—in other words, a pension based on employment where Social Security taxes weren't withheld from their pay—were subject to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).
 

Who benefits from the Social Security Fairness Act?

The repeal of WEP and GPO means that pensions no longer affect Social Security benefits for any recipient. Since these laws only applied to people with noncovered pensions, most recipients of Social Security didn't see any difference in their payments. However, for certain recipients of noncovered pensions—such as some teachers, firefighters, police officers, individuals covered by the Civil Service Retirement System, and eligible spouses—the Social Security Fairness Act increased their payments to ensure they receive the full benefit they're entitled to.

If you earned a pension from an employer who didn't withhold Social Security taxes, you might benefit from the Social Security Fairness Act. However, if you never applied for retirement or spousal benefits because of WEP or GPO, you may need to file an application through the Social Security Administration. If you previously received a reduced benefit under WEP or GPO, you should have started receiving new monthly benefit payments in 2025. To ensure you're receiving the correct entitlement amount, contact the Social Security Administration.
 

When did the Social Security Fairness Act take effect?

Though the Social Security Fairness Act was signed into law in January 2025, it applied retroactively to benefits paid after December 2023. As a result, those whose benefits were reduced by WEP or GPO in January 2024 or later received lump-sum payments for the penalty amounts that were deducted under these provisions.

While the repeal of the WEP and GPO means your pension won't have any effect on your Social Security benefit, the age at which you start claiming Social Security can still reduce or increase your benefit amount. It's also important to note that this law doesn't change the existing requirements or expand eligibility for Social Security benefits, so you'll only receive your full, unreduced benefit if you've qualified and reached full retirement age.

What types of pensions used to affect Social Security benefits?

Before the Social Security Fairness Act, most pensions didn't have any effect on Social Security benefits. That's because the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset only applied to people who were eligible for both Social Security and a noncovered pension—one based on employment where they didn't pay Social Security taxes. For those individuals, WEP and GPO often reduced benefits—unless they qualified for an exemption. Those exempt from WEP included military reservists, ministers, workers who paid Social Security taxes for 30 years, railroad employees, and federal workers hired after December 31, 1983.

What was the Windfall Elimination Provision?

The Windfall Elimination Provision affected certain people who qualified for both a noncovered pension and Social Security. For example, if you earned a pension through an employer that didn't withhold Social Security taxes but also qualified for Social Security benefits through a previous job where you did pay those taxes, the Social Security Windfall Elimination Provision would have reduced your Social Security retirement benefits by up to 50% of the monthly noncovered pension amount.

Before its repeal, the Windfall Elimination Provision existed to prevent those with noncovered pensions from claiming Social Security benefits that were disproportionate to their actual earnings. Since Social Security replaces a larger portion of your income if you're a lower-wage earner, those affected by WEP were receiving Social Security benefits as if they were long-term lower-income earners, without accounting for their wages and pension benefits through noncovered earnings.

Social Security and Government Pension Offset

Under the Government Pension Offset, spouses and surviving spouses of workers who received a government pension saw their spousal Social Security benefits reduced or eliminated. The purpose of GPO was to prevent people who had their own noncovered pension from also collecting full spousal Social Security benefits. Before it was repealed, GPO reduced Social Security benefits by two-thirds of the recipient's government pension. And in cases where those two-thirds were equal to or greater than the spousal benefit, GPO would have eliminated the Social Security payment altogether.

What will you do with your increased Social Security payments?

If you're now receiving an increased Social Security benefit, you might be wondering what to do with the extra money. How you choose to spend that money is up to you, whether it's paying off debt, investing, planning experiences, or taking up a new hobby. But if you want hands-on support navigating retirement spending and other important financial decisions, professional financial advice can ease your mind, save you time, and help you feel confident and in control.