WASHINGTON — The Social Security Administration has resumed mailing statements to workers letting them know the estimated benefits they will get when they retire, the agency announced Tuesday.
Social Security began phasing out mailed statements to most workers in 2011 to save an estimated $70 million a year. Instead, the agency directed workers to track their future benefits online using a secure website.
Congress, however, passed a bill last year requiring Social Security to resume mailing the statements.
The agency said Tuesday that many workers will now start receiving paper statements in the mail every five years, starting a few months before their 25th birthday. Once workers reach 60 they will get them every year.
The first statements were mailed out Monday.
Social Security retirement benefits are based on the wages workers earn throughout their lives. The statements include a history of taxable earnings and payroll taxes for each year so people can check for mistakes. They also provide estimates of monthly benefits, based on current earnings and when a worker plans to retire.
Workers can claim reduced retirement benefits starting at age 62. Full benefits are available at age 66, a threshold that is gradually increasing to 67 for people born in 1960 or later.
Workers can get higher benefits if they wait until they turn 70 to start receiving them.