This Change to Social Security Makes it Harder to Qualify for Benefits

There are millions of older Americans today who rely on Social Security to stay afloat financially once they decide to end their careers. But it’s not a given that you’ll qualify for benefits once you get older.

Contrary to what you might hear, Social Security benefits have to be earned. And a change to the program’s rules now makes it harder to qualify for those benefits in retirement.

A key change you need to know about

Social Security tends to undergo changes every year, and 2025 was no exception. This year, the program’s earnings-test limits rose for people working and collecting benefits at the same time, as did the wage cap that determines how much income is taxed to fund Social Security.

Another big change Social Security underwent was a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2025. Because inflation cooled off a lot in 2024, benefits weren’t eligible for as large a raise as in recent years.

But historically speaking, a 2.5% Social Security COLA actually isn’t terrible. In fact, it’s a pretty average increase.

One additional change that hit the program in 2025 was the value of a work credit. In 2024, it was $1,730. But this year, it’s $1,810.

Why does this matter? Work credits are how you earn Social Security benefits in retirement.

To qualify for benefits, you must accumulate 40 work credits in your lifetime. And you can only get a maximum of four credits per year.

Now that it takes more earnings to get a single Social Security work credit, qualifying for benefits may be more difficult for people who work on a part-time basis and/or are low earners. But for most full-time workers, this change won’t actually be a problem.

Even people who earn the national minimum wage can qualify for four Social Security work credits this year if they’re full-timers working 40 hours a week. So this change really only impacts people with very low or very part-time wages.

Other ways to get Social Security

If you reach retirement age having failed to accrue 40 Social Security work credits, it’s not a given that you won’t get any benefits. You won’t be entitled to monthly checks based on your own earnings record, but that doesn’t mean you can’t claim benefits on a spouse’s record.

Spousal benefits can equal up to 50% of your spouse’s monthly Social Security benefit at their full retirement age. And you’re also allowed to claim Social Security spousal benefits on a former spouse’s record.

Furthermore, if you’re married to someone who’s collecting Social Security and they pass away, you’re typically entitled to the program’s survivor benefits. And those can be worth 100% of the amount your spouse was eligible for each month.

So even if you have a $0 income work history, you may be able to get Social Security one way or another. But if that’s not the case, then you’ll want to pay attention to the value of work credits each year to make sure you’re earning enough to get benefits down the line.

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