WEP elimination HR82 impact on Canadians in USA

[formerpatriot]

formerpatriot wrote:
> As of December 28, Biden has not yet signed the bill into law.
> He has until the 31st... and he is on vacation.
> Do not celebrate yet.

That was incorrect.
I was assuming 10 days (from December 21) but it is 10 "working days".
Not sure what counts as a working day but it should take us to January 6, 7 or 8.

[nelsona]

The bill was "presented" to the president on Dec 27
https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-con ... 82/actions
Congress adjourns Jan 3 (for the new session to then begin on that date). If bill is not signed by that morning , it dies.

[bc075259]

There is WEP & GPO facebook page where they post regular updates, latest says the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) has announced that H.R. 82 will be signed on January 6.

According to this post, it indicates he has until Jan 8: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/explaine ... te6hSEJS2Q

[MaggieA]

The WEP & GPO Facebook page is now showing the signing ceremony invitation received by the page's admin herself (evidently a longtime mover and shaker in the repeal effort). 10 AM on January 6. So I think we can all relax about the possibility of a pocket veto. It'll be signed.

I'm surprised by Nelson's comment that you can't backdate in the calculator, but am not motivated enough to fire up my old iMac in Windows mode to check. I have my own pertinent details in a spreadsheet, originally derived from the calculator, so I know exactly how much I should get for 2024 and 2025. FWIW, based on past experience with a correction to my WEP (which took a trip across the border to SSA to straighten out), I still predict that we'll get 11 months of adjustment rather than 12 for 2024. But we'll all find out soon enough, anyway. This is pretty happy news for my household. With 14 years of SS earnings in the US, we are right in the WEP pain zone.

[nelsona]

I said you can't BACKdate the tool, which is what someone who has already claimed SS would need, in order to determine what their WEP WAS (if they don't have their report on how their initial benefit WAS calculated.

As to the 11 or 12, look at your COLA adjustment. It is effective for year 2025, and the payment you receive in January (regardless if it was owed to you, or earned for December 2024 or not) is the new value.

It'll be 12 slices for 2024. that is owe the bill was written.

[bc075259]

I recall when I spoke with the SSA agent originally when he applied WEP to my SS, he said that my wife's would also be reduced because she was to claim 50% of my now WEP reduced FRA amount. However, I'm not sure if that was indeed the case implemented. Has anyone had this same case?

[MaggieA]

[quote=bc075259 post_id=531201 time=1735746568 user_id=10393]
I recall when I spoke with the SSA agent originally when he applied WEP to my SS, he said that my wife's would also be reduced because she was to claim 50% of my now WEP reduced FRA amount. However, I'm not sure if that was indeed the case implemented. Has anyone had this same case?
[/quote]

Yes, definitely. My husband's SS is topped up to an amount equal to half my after-WEP SS. (He has some SS he earned himself, but it's less than half mine). This is part of why my household will get a substantial bump from WEP repeal. The calculation is completely clear (to me).

[nelsona]

Indeed, my spouse will be relying on getting the 50% spousal rather than her own (which would have to rely on totalization in any event), which will now be bumped up too.

There has been so many attempts to kill WEP (even HR82 had been proposed 4 years ago) that it almost seems to good to be true. WEP and GPO were a very time consuming workload for SSA employees, that now that staffing is cut back, it only makes sense to eliminate that.

[Kader99]

I am retired in the USA collecting my SSA and will apply soon to QPP (I let it build for few years). My understanding is that since the WEP will be eliminated I can collect my QPP and I don't have to notify SSA about it for WEP deduction. Pease confirm that is the case.
Thanks in advance.

Kader

[nelsona]

Once the law is signed AND the regulations have been made clear for the SSA to apply, yes, this will be the case.

Wait a couple of weeks.

[Kader99]

Thanks Nelsona for your support!
I wish you all the best and happy new year!

Kader

[stewak2]

Just as FYI, Biden signed HR82 January 5th.

[bwafusion]

President Biden signed HR82 into law Jan 5. 2025

[nelsona]

So, the guidelines from SSA are to sit tight while they figure out what they owe you, making sure that they have your correct contact info:

https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement ... s-act.html

[MaggieA]

SSA has updated their information page today (Friday, January 24, 2025) with quite a lot of detailed information, in a Q&A format.

https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement ... s-act.html

I noticed particularly this item:

"For someone already receiving benefits affected by WEP or GPO, how far back might they receive increased benefits under the Social Security Fairness Act?
December 2023 is the last month that WEP and GPO will apply. This means that those rules no longer apply to benefits payable for January 2024 and later. Important Reminder: Social Security benefits payable for January 2024 would generally have been received in February 2024."


This question was discussed a bit in previous replies on this thread. I believe SSA is saying here what I belatedly realized and tried to explain. For those of us who are affected and started our SS before 2024, we will get an adjustment for the payments we received in Feb-Dec 2024, but not January, for the reason explained here by SSA. So if you're trying to figure out exactly and precisely how much extra you get, it's 11 times the monthly amount for 2024, not 12 times.