Retirees Returning to Work Risk Social Security Cuts Above $24,480 Before Age 67

Q: Could taking a part-time job today secretly inflate your Medicare premiums two years from now?

Yes. A part-time job can raise your Medicare premiums later if it increases your taxable income enough to trigger Medicare’s income-related surcharge, known as IRMAA. Medicare does not look at your current-year paycheck when setting most premiums. It generally uses your modified adjusted gross income from two years earlier. For 2026 Medicare premiums, that means your 2024 tax return is typically what counts. So even a temporary bump in wages from part-time work can show up later in higher Part B and Part D premiums. This is separate from Social Security’s earnings test. If you claimed Social Security before full retirement age, new wages may temporarily reduce your monthly benefit now if you earn above the annual limits. But Medicare premium increases work through the tax system, not the Social Security earnings test. The risk is higher if the added wages combine with IRA withdrawals, 401(k) distributions, capital gains, or other income and push you over an IRMAA threshold. The same added income can also make more of your Social Security benefits taxable and may affect means-tested help such as Medicaid or Medicare’s Extra Help. It is not necessarily “secret,” but many retirees miss the two-year lag. If your income spike was tied to a one-time event or a major life change, you may be able to ask Medicare to reconsider. Before taking the job, it is worth estimating the after-tax pay and checking whether the extra earnings could lift future Medicare costs.

3 articles · Updated · The Globe and Mail · Aug 20

$24,480 in 2026 earnings can trigger temporary Social Security benefit cuts for retirees who claimed before full retirement age, with the SSA withholding $1 for every $2 earned above that limit.
Age 67 is the full retirement age for people born in 1960 or later; in the year a retiree reaches it, the penalty eases to $1 withheld for every $3 above $65,160, then disappears entirely.
Means-tested aid can also shrink or vanish when retirees return to work, including SSI, SNAP, Medicaid, housing subsidies and Medicare's Extra Help program.
ACA marketplace subsidies may fall as income rises before Medicare eligibility at 65, and added wages can also push retirees into a higher tax bracket.
The broader takeaway is that un-retiring may boost income or quality of life, but retirees need to weigh wages against lost benefits, higher healthcare costs and taxes.