As outlined in GN 00307.290A, the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 (SSFA) repealed the WEP for benefits payable for January 2024 (paid in February 2024) and later. Therefore, the instructions in this section only apply for months payable for December 2023 (paid in January 2024) and earlier.

The WEP Guarantee Provision (WEP Guarantee) limits the reduction of a Social Security benefit subject to the WEP. For general information on the WEP Guarantee, refer to RS 00605.370.

Some foreign pensions are not based in whole or in part on work performed after 1956. ONLY apply the WEP Guarantee to pensions (or parts of a pension) that are based on work performed after 1956.

The following are case examples of the WEP Guarantee:

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  The number holder (NH) receives a foreign pension of $500 a month. The amount of a universal pension is $400 based on residency; $100 is based on earnings from non-covered employment. Separate the two figures to use only $100 to calculate the WEP Guarantee.

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  The NH makes voluntary social insurance system contributions to the United Kingdom system during periods the NH is not working. Exclude these contributions when applying the WEP Guarantee.

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  Part of the pension is based on covered earnings. For example, part of the work on which the pension is based was for an employer that lacked a 3121(l) agreement for its employees, while part was for an employer that had such an agreement. If paid as one benefit, separate the covered earnings-based pension from the pension based on non-covered earnings and use only the amount based on non-covered earnings to calculate the WEP Guarantee.

We require proof of the pension when the alleged pension amount based only on the earnings from non-covered employment, after currency conversion, is low enough for the WEP Guarantee to apply. Only accept original and certified photocopies of foreign pension evidence when applying the WEP Guarantee. Evidence of entitlement to a foreign pension will generally be a letter or award notice issued by the paying agency in the foreign country.

Ensure the proof includes the amount of the pension in the first month of concurrent entitlement to both the pension and the Social Security benefit, as well as the months of employment (after 1956) and any months or amounts that are not based on earnings from that employment.

Apply the WEP Guarantee to compute the PIA when:

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  Based on the NH's allegations, use of the WEP Guarantee would result in a higher primary insurance amount (PIA) than the modified formula; and

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  We have verified the pension amount from the paying agency or employer.

If we cannot verify the pension amount, do not apply the WEP Guarantee.

Use the maximum reduction to compute the PIA. Explain to the NH we can recompute the PIA using the WEP Guarantee when we receive the necessary verification of the pension amount from the agency or employer.

Document all actions taken in the claims file.

Refer any questions on the WEP and foreign pensions to the Office of Earnings and International Operations (OEIO) at:

Social Security Administration

Office of Earnings and International Operations

P.O. Box 17769

Baltimore, MD 21235 -7769

When we determine that a foreign pension is based in part on non-covered earnings and in part on a factor or factors that do not trigger the WEP, prorate the foreign pension to obtain only the part based on non-covered earnings.

Prorate the foreign pension as follows (convert from a weekly to monthly amount, when needed):

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  Step 1: Multiply the total pension amount by the ratio of the number of months of non-covered work over the total number of months used in the computation.

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  Step 2: Multiply the pension amount by the total number of months of non-covered work after 1956, and

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  Step 3: Divide this number by the total number of months used by the foreign country to compute the pension, based on both non-covered work and the pension payment that does not trigger the WEP.

EXAMPLE: A NH is entitled to a German pension of 400 Euros (EUR) based on periods of employment and voluntary contributions in Germany from January 1951 through December 1970 (a total of 240 months). The NH had 72 months of non-covered work before 1957. The NH made voluntary contributions to the German pension plan from January 1968 through December 1970 (a total of 36 months).

In this example, we would prorate the foreign pension as follows:

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  Step 1: Exclude the 72 months before 1957, since the WEP Guarantee applies only to non-covered earnings after 1956. 1951 - 1957 = 6 years. That leaves 14 years or 168 months after 1956.

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  Step 2: Exclude the 36 months from 1968 through 1970 for which the NH made only voluntary contributions, that is, the NH did not work in non-covered employment. This leaves 132 months during which the NH worked in non-covered employment after 1956.

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  Step 3: Multiply 400 EUR by 132 (52,800 and divide this number by 240; i.e., 400 EUR  132 months = 52,800 divided by 240 months = 220 EUR. Therefore, for purposes of the WEP Guarantee, the worker's foreign pension based on earnings from non-covered employment is 220 EUR.