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Social Security, also known as Old Age Survivors Disability Insurance (OASDI), is a federal program enacted in 1935 to protect eligible workers and their dependents against financial loss due to old age, disability, or death. With few exceptions, nearly all individuals are covered by Social Security.
Social Security uses the Quarter of Coverage (QC) system to determine whether an individual qualifies for benefits. The type and amount of benefits available are determined by the number of credits, or QCs, a worker has earned. Anyone working in jobs covered by Social Security, or operating their own business, may earn up to a maximum of 4 credits per year of work.
The term fully insured describes someone who has earned 40 quarters of coverage — the equivalent of 10 years of work — and who is therefore entitled to Social Security retirement benefits, premium-free Medicare Part A, and survivor benefits. An individual entitled to premium-free Medicare Part A is automatically eligible for Medicare Part B as well, though a monthly premium applies.
An individual can instead attain currently insured status (sometimes called partially insured), which qualifies for certain benefits, by having earned 6 credits during the 13-quarter period ending with the quarter in which the insured:
For younger workers, the number of credits required to qualify for disability benefits differs by age, according to a table established by Social Security. Generally, an individual needs 40 credits, at least 20 of which must have been earned in the 10 years before the disability. In other circumstances, the required number of credits varies by age:
| Age | Credits Needed |
|---|---|
| 31–42 | 20 |
| 44 | 22 |
| 46 | 24 |
| 48 | 26 |
| 50 | 28 |
| 52 | 30 |
| 54 | 32 |
| 56 | 34 |
| 58 | 36 |
| 60 | 38 |
| 62+ | 40 |
Disability Credits Needed by Age
| Conditions for Payment | Paid To | Type of Payment |
|---|---|---|
| Retirement benefit: Fully insured status and age 66* (or reduced benefits at age 62) | Retired individual and eligible dependents | Monthly benefit equal to the primary insurance amount (PIA) |
| Disability benefit: Fully insured status and total and permanent disability prior to the retirement age | Disabled worker and spouse and eligible dependents | Monthly disability benefit after a 5-month waiting period |
| Survivor benefit: Worker's death | Surviving spouse and dependent children | Lump-sum burial benefit if fully or currently insured; monthly income payments if fully insured |
*The current full retirement age is 66, and is gradually increasing to age 67.
Survivor benefits are death benefits paid to a worker's surviving spouse and dependent children under specified circumstances. A lump-sum burial benefit is available for a spouse living with the worker at the time of death, or a spouse or child who is eligible for Social Security in the month of the worker's death. Monthly income payments may also be paid, in the event of a fully insured (covered) worker's death, to:
Social Security is funded by taxes imposed on a worker's earned income — a payroll tax paid by all employees and employers, including self-employed individuals. The tax applies to a certain percentage of the employee's income, called the taxable wage base. The employer deducts the tax from the employee's paycheck and contributes an equal amount. Part of the tax funds OASDI under FICA (the Federal Insurance Contributions Act), and part funds Medicare; self-employed workers pay an amount equivalent to both the employee's and employer's share.