What You Can Do if Your Social Security Contributions Fall Short

A woman works on paperwork and a laptop at her dining room table.

Some people may assume that once Social Security taxes have been deducted from their paychecks, they will automatically be eligible to receive a retirement benefit.

But eligibility is not attained simply by starting to pay into the program. Workers must accumulate a minimum number of Social Security credits before they can collect retirement benefits on their own earnings record.