Report wages to Social Security within the same month you earn them

You must tell Social Security about any money you earn during your Trial Work Period, and you must report it in the month you actually earn the wages—not when you receive the paycheck. Social Security uses your reported earnings to track whether you are still disabled and to calculate whether you have used up your nine Trial Work Period months.

There are three ways to report: by phone, by mail, or in person at your local Social Security office. Phone reporting is fastest and leaves a record of the date you called. Most people report by phone because it takes about five minutes and you get when ready confirmation that Social Security received the information.

You do not have to report every paycheck. You report the total wages you earned in that calendar month, even if you were paid twice or received a bonus. Social Security will ask you for the month, the amount you earned, and the name of your employer.

Key Takeaways

  • Report your total monthly wages to Social Security by phone, mail, or in person during the same month you earn them, not when you receive payment.
  • Call the Social Security wage reporting line at 1-800-772-1213 and have your employer name and monthly earnings amount ready.
  • Each month you report wages counts as one Trial Work Period month, regardless of how much you earned, until you have used all nine months.
  • If you do not report wages and Social Security discovers unreported income later, they may overpay you and demand repayment.
  • Keep your own records of what you reported and when, because Social Security's records sometimes contain errors.

Reporting by phone: the fastest method

Call 1-800-772-1213 Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. your local time. Have ready: the month you earned the wages, the total amount you earned that month, and your employer's name. The representative will confirm your Social Security number and ask these three questions. The call usually takes three to five minutes.

Ask the representative to give you the date you called and confirm that they recorded your report. Write this down when ready. Social Security's phone system logs the call, but you want your own record in case there is a dispute later about whether you reported on time.

If you call after the month ends, you can still report, but Social Security counts that month as a Trial Work Period month only if you report before the 13th of the following month. For example, if you earned wages in January, you must report by February 13 for January to count as a Trial Work Period month. Reporting after that date means January does not count toward your nine months, but you still owe repayment if you earned over the monthly threshold.

Reporting by mail or in person

You can mail a letter to your local Social Security office stating the month, the amount you earned, and your employer's name. Include your Social Security number on the letter. Mail it so it arrives before the 13th of the month after you earned the wages. Use certified mail with return receipt so you have proof Social Security received it.

You can also walk into your local Social Security office and report in person. Bring your Social Security card or a document with your number, and tell the representative the month, amount, and employer name. Ask for a receipt showing the date you reported. This method is slower than phone reporting because you have to travel and wait, but it gives you a paper record when ready.

What happens after you report

Social Security records your report and counts that month toward your nine Trial Work Period months. The month counts even if you earned only $1, and it counts the same way whether you earned $100 or $5,000. Each month you report wages uses up one of your nine months.

After you have used all nine Trial Work Period months, Social Security moves you into the Extended may be able to access Period. During Extended may be able to access, you can still work and earn any amount, but your benefits will stop in any month you earn over the monthly threshold (the threshold changes each year and is set by Social Security). You do not lose your benefits permanently—they restart the next month if your earnings drop below the threshold.

Social Security will send you a notice after each month you report, showing what they recorded. Check this notice against your own records. If the amount is wrong or the month is wrong, call when ready and ask them to correct it. Errors in wage reporting can cause overpayments later.

Common mistakes in wage reporting

The most common mistake is reporting wages in the wrong month. If you earned money in January but did not report it until March, Social Security will record it as March earnings. This shifts your Trial Work Period timeline and can cause confusion about which months count. Report in the month you earn, not the month you receive the check.

Another mistake is not reporting at all. Some people think that if they earn under a certain amount, they do not have to report. This is wrong. You must report every month you earn any wages, even $50. If Social Security later discovers unreported income, they will overpay you (meaning they paid you benefits you were not may have access to to) and will demand repayment, usually by reducing your future benefits.

A third mistake is reporting the wrong amount. If you earned $1,200 but tell Social Security $1,000, the discrepancy will show up when your employer's records are matched against Social Security's records months later. Always report the gross amount you earned before taxes, not the amount you took home.

If you miss the reporting important date

If you do not report by the 13th of the month after you earned wages, that month will not count as a Trial Work Period month. However, you still owe repayment if you earned over the monthly threshold. This means you lose the benefit of the Trial Work Period protection but still have to pay back the overpayment.

If you realize you missed the important date, report anyway. Call Social Security and explain that you are reporting late. They will record the wages, and you can ask them to review whether the month should count as a Trial Work Period month. Some offices will make exceptions if you have a good reason for the delay, but there is no may provide.

To avoid this problem, report every month, even if you earned very little. Set a reminder on your phone for the last day of each month to report the previous month's wages. This takes five minutes and protects you from missing the important date.

Keeping your own wage records

Keep a straightforward log of every month you report and what you reported. Write down: the month, the amount, the date you reported, and the name of the Social Security representative if you reported by phone. This record protects you if Social Security's records are wrong or if there is a dispute about what you reported.

Also keep your pay stubs or a record from your employer showing how much you earned each month. When Social Security matches your reported wages against your employer's records, these documents prove what you actually earned. If there is a discrepancy, your pay stub is the evidence that settles it.

Social Security sometimes makes errors in recording wages. If you reported $2,000 but their records show $1,200, you need proof of what you actually reported and what you actually earned. Without your own records, you have no way to correct the error.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I report gross wages or net wages after taxes?

Report gross wages—the amount before taxes, Social Security withholding, and other deductions are taken out. This is the amount your employer reports to the IRS and to Social Security's wage records. Social Security uses gross wages to determine whether you have used a Trial Work Period month and whether you are over the monthly threshold.

What if I am self-employed or a contractor?

Report the net profit from your self-employment or contracting work—the amount you earned after business expenses. If you earned $5,000 in revenue but spent $2,000 on supplies and equipment, report $3,000. Keep records of your business income and expenses because Social Security may ask for documentation.

Can I report wages for a month I did not work?

No. Report only the months in which you actually earned wages. If you took a month off and earned nothing, do not report that month. It does not count as a Trial Work Period month, and you do not need to contact Social Security about it.

What if my employer made a mistake on my pay stub?

Report the amount you actually received or the amount shown on your pay stub, not what you think you should have received. If the amount is wrong, you and your employer need to correct it with payroll. Once the correction is made, contact Social Security and ask them to update your wage record to match the corrected amount.

Do I have to report if I earned money but have not been paid yet?

Report only wages you have actually earned in that month, not wages you expect to earn or have been promised. If you worked in January but will not be paid until February, report it in February when you receive the money. The month you report is what counts toward your Trial Work Period.