Social Security helps millions of Americans relying on it pay for retirement, and the program is nearing a key funding deadline.
Federal trustees confirmed this week that the retirement trust fund will run dry about one quarter sooner than their previous estimate.
The average monthly retirement benefit was about $2,081 in April 2026, and the program provides at least half of the total income for roughly 4 in 10 beneficiaries age 65 and older, according to the Social Security Administration.
That tighter timeline has pushed some older workers toward early claiming, a hasty decision that Fidelity’s planning team says could permanently reduce their lifetime benefits.
Fidelity’s Financial Solutions Team has outlined a strategy framework for every age bracket, from catch-up contributions to Roth conversions, designed to offset potential benefit cuts.
Social Security’s retirement fund depletion date shifts to late 2032
The 2026 Trustees Report set the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund’s projected depletion date for late 2032, the SSA confirmed.
That projection moved forward by one quarter from last year’s estimate, which had placed fund exhaustion in the first quarter of 2033.
The 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act accelerated that timeline by reducing the trust fund’s revenue from income taxes on benefits, as noted in the Bipartisan Policy Center’s 2026 Trustees Report explainer.
Social Security’s insolvency is no longer the future crisis Washington has been ignoring for decades. This can be avoided with policy changes to benefits, revenues, or a combination
Without congressional action, the program would cover only 78% of scheduled benefits once OASI reserves run out, amounting to a 22% automatic cut, the Trustees noted.Â
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, applying a slightly higher 24% cut to current state-level benefit data, estimated that the average retiree would lose about $500 per month.
Beneficiaries in 29 states would face reductions exceeding that national average, and the automatic cuts would affect a total of 63 million people.
Congress has historically reached compromises to continue funding the program, and past reforms have been phased in over the years rather than imposed abruptly, Fidelity noted.
Fidelity warns older workers against the early claiming trap
Current recipients would likely face the least impact from future changes in solvency, Brad Koval, a director at Fidelity’s Financial Solutions Team, noted.
“Historically, changes made to the Social Security program to improve its solvency have impacted younger workers,” Koval said.
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But the uncertainty has pushed some older workers toward early claiming, a move Fidelity vice president Can Lu says could backfire significantly.
“People in older generations may think Social Security is going away, so they claim right now, which isn’t good since there’s a huge benefit to delaying,” Lu said.
Your monthly benefit grows by roughly 8% for each year you delay past full retirement age, up to age 70. Full retirement age is 67 for anyone born after 1960.
Claiming at 62 instead of 67 permanently cuts your monthly check by 30%, a gap that compounds over decades, the Social Security Administration confirmed.
The Center for Retirement Research’s 2025 analysis found that the share of people claiming Social Security at age 62 has fallen sharply since the mid-1990s, dropping from more than half of eligible workers to roughly one-quarter of new claimants today.
Fidelity warns that claiming Social Security too early could cost retirees thousands in lifetime benefits.Maskot/Getty Images
How catch-up contributions could cushion a potential benefit reduction
Workers in their 50s have access to enhanced contribution limits that could help offset a potential reduction in Social Security income.
“Certainly by age 55 you should be thinking about it, and the earlier the better,” Lu said.
Lu noted that catch-up contributions, combined with employer matching and the compounding effect of invested savings, can meaningfully close a future income gap over time.
In 2026, workers aged 50 and older can add an extra $8,000 catch-up to their workplace plan, bringing total allowable 401(k) contributions to $32,500, the Internal Revenue Service stated.
Workers between ages 60 and 63 qualify for a larger super catch-up of $11,250, raising their maximum annual workplace contribution to $35,750, Fidelity noted.
One complication affects higher earners this year: those with Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxable wages above $150,000 must direct catch-up contributions into a Roth 401(k).
If your employer does not offer a Roth option within its retirement plan, you cannot make catch-up contributions at all in 2026, Fidelity warned.
Roth conversions and younger workers’ time advantage offer added protection
Converting traditional retirement savings to a Roth individual retirement account is another tool Fidelity highlights for workers concerned about future tax exposure and benefit reductions.
You pay income taxes on the converted amount upfront, but qualified withdrawals in retirement are tax-free, and Roth accounts are exempt from required minimum distributions.
One important rule applies: the Roth individual retirement account must meet a five-year aging requirement before earnings withdrawals can be taken without taxes or penalties.
Younger workers hold a different kind of advantage: decades of compounding that reward even small, consistent increases in their annual savings rate, Lu noted.
The program has never missed a payment in more than 90 years. Congress has always acted before benefits were cut during prior funding crises.
With only six years left on the clock, individual preparation remains the one variable every worker and retiree can begin controlling today, the Fidelity report noted.
Related: Social Security’s funds will run out sooner than expected
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Jun 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the Personal Finance section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
