Is anyone in our group a Social Security expert, or taken any courses?

[kathyc2]

2 minutes ago, Lion EA said:

or CPE only and not CE

So CE is what it's called for enrolled agents?  If something qualifies for CPE is doesn't automatically count for EA's?  

[Medlin Software, Dennis]

4 minutes ago, kathyc2 said:

Have you gotten into the indexing factors and bend points?  If so, you can easily create a spreadsheet to come up with a close estimate of what changes higher earnings will make.  

I used a calculator, I think on the SS site, to play around with different earnings.  Again, looking only at what our daughter will get for SSDI.  a $10 a month increase (the number I watched for) at onset, for hopefully 40+ years, is not something to ignore.

SSDI will not be her only resource, but maximizing for her makes sense.

[jklcpa]

1 minute ago, kathyc2 said:

So CE is what it's called for enrolled agents?  If something qualifies for CPE is doesn't automatically count for EA's?  

Surgent's detailed course descriptions include a breakdown of the potential credits for CPAs and EAs who will recognize those (NASBA, IRS...)

Fwiw, I've taken the SS course by Bob Lickwar and found it helpful and informative but certainly not enough for me to want to create various complex scenarios for my clients.

[Lion EA]

Well, it has to be IRS-approved CE. EAs must look for the square IRS logo that IRS-approved CE providers use and the IRS-provided course number. Only federal tax law qualifies, including ethics and updates. No state tax topics and no tax-adjacent topics, such as SS, Medicare, office management, technology, (although, IRS has now approved security-related topics).

[kathyc2]

5 minutes ago, Lion EA said:

Well, it has to be IRS-approved CE

Well, I learned something new today! 

[jklcpa]

12 minutes ago, Lion EA said:

Well, it has to be IRS-approved CE. EAs must look for the square IRS logo that IRS-approved CE providers use and the IRS-provided course number. Only federal tax law qualifies, including ethics and updates. No state tax topics and no tax-adjacent topics, such as SS, Medicare, office management, technology, (although, IRS has now approved security-related topics).

Lion, I do know that about the credits and logo.  It's great to maximize credits for the money expended, but maybe some other readers here may want or need to expand knowledge in areas that may or may not involve earning the credits in order to better serve clients or for their own benefit.

Schirallicpa had asked for courses, and as a CPA she would be able to earn credits with either Surgent or Checkpoint. Both companies have courses on the subject. 

[kathyc2]

6 hours ago, BrewOne said:

Folks who aren't well-positioned for retirement don't tend to listen to advice...they've already made up their mind to sign up ASAP.

Unfortunately, that is quite often true. 

I've also had the flip side.  I've had people that are miserable in their job.  I tell them let's look at the numbers to see how far away you are from replacing your current income.  Sometimes we find that they would be fine to retire.  Others are maybe a year or 2 away with a few tweaks. Just knowing the numbers about when and how much they will have can make a huge difference in their outlook. 

[Lion EA]

I take a LOT of courses that do NOT earn me CEs to retain my EA. I take classes on CT, NY, MA, PA, CA, and other states, and also technology, and classes from instructors/topics I like that might give CPE but not CE. My NY/CT-ATP group includes an hour of NY tax updates and an hour of CT tax updates each year and two hours of non-federal tax law classes (we've done SS, Medicare, retirement planning, multi-state issues, financial aid/paying for college, and office security years before the IRS approved it for CEs).

[jklcpa]

48 minutes ago, Lion EA said:

I take a LOT of courses that do NOT earn me CEs to retain my EA.

I never suggested that you don't.

What I said was:

1 hour ago, jklcpa said:

...maybe some other readers here may want or need to expand knowledge in areas that may or may not involve earning the credits....