Why don't Social Security benefits start when they should?

Here's a common situation: you have an Income Lab plan where Social Security benefits are claimed at 62. But then you go to the Cash Flows > Income Sourcing screen and see that they don't start until age 67. Or maybe you see a few months of benefits here and there before age 67, but there are a bunch of gaps. What's going on?

The reason you see this strange behavior is almost certainly because of the Retirement Earnings Test (RET). This is a set of rules, administered by the Social Security Administration, that can reduce or eliminate benefits before Full Retirement Age (FRA) is the benefit earner is still receiving earned income (wages or self-employment income). At the extreme, if earned income is high enough, the RET can fully eliminate benefits until FRA. At somewhat lower income levels, benefits can be paid early in the year but then be missing later in the year. (Keep in mind that benefits are paid in arrears, meaning the first check of the year is actually received in February. The January check is for December benefits.)