^[1]With your Social Security Annual Statement obtained ^[2] and reviewed ^[3], you may find some inaccuracies.

Though I only had about 10 years of work experience when I first reviewed my statement, I found incorrect information.

Armed with documentation to prove the validity of my challenge, I took these steps to correct my Social Security Annual Statement.

Correcting my Social Security Annual Statement

Upon reviewing my Social Security annual statement ^[3], I found two amounts on Page 3 that failed to record my full Taxed Social Security Earnings from Box 1 on my W-2 statements. Armed with my Social Security card, my annual statement, and W-2 Wage and Tax Statements, I went to my local Social Security office.

When I arrived, I waited in a short line before seeing a representative at the counter. Upon showing the clerk the discrepancies, she took my forms to a back office. She then came back with my documents and said I would see the changes on my next annual statement.

Though I really wanted verification, which she could not provide, I left the office. The next year, I received a corrected Social Security Annual Statement.

During my interaction, the Social Security office did not accept phone calls, so I had to visit the office. Also, the information was not computerized, so copies were taken of my documentation and sent to headquarters for processing. Hopefully, the process for you will prove easier.

Correcting your Social Security Annual Statement

When you find a discrepancy on your annual statement, the Social Security Administration invites you to contact them via telephone or mail:

Call us right away at 1-800-772-1213 (7 a.m.–7 p.m. your local time) if any earnings for years before last year are shown incorrectly. Please have your W-2 or tax return for those years available.

If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you may call our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778.

If you have questions about your personal information, you must provide your complete Social Security number.

If you are in the United States, you also may write to the Social Security Administration, Office of Earnings Operations, P.O. Box 33026, Baltimore, MD 21290-3026.

If you are outside the United States, please write to the Office of International Operations, P.O. Box 17769, Baltimore, MD 21235-7769, USA.

In using time wisely to correct your Social Security Annual Statement press on. Gather your documents, make the call, and proceed until your annual statement is accurate. Keep plugging along. Once completed, review your statement annually.

Hang in there! Your future benefits depend on you using time wisely now. Working along with you!

Question: Do you keep all your W-2 forms from your first job to the present?