What are the WEP and GPO, and will they reduce my Social Security?

These are two rules that historically cut Social Security for people who also earned a pension from work not covered by Social Security — common for some teachers, police, firefighters, certain federal workers, and people with foreign pensions. The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) reduced your own benefit, and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) reduced spousal or survivor benefits by two-thirds of your non-covered pension. Important update: the Social Security Fairness Act, signed in January 2025, repealed both WEP and GPO. Affected beneficiaries now receive full benefits and many got retroactive payments for 2024. If you have a public-sector or foreign pension and previously expected a reduction, your benefit should be larger than older estimates show. Verify your current figures by reviewing your record at wealthserene.com/tools/social-security-optimizer.