To be currently insured for Social Security survivor and disability purposes, an individual under age 24 generally must have earned how many quarters of coverage during the last three years?

Why A is correct

An individual under age 24 is currently insured with 6 quarters of coverage earned during the three years before death or disability. The fully insured status, by contrast, generally requires 40 credits. Currently insured status is the more easily reached standard, and it matters for survivor benefits; full insurance is needed for retirement benefits. Credits are earned through covered work and self-employment.

Why the other options are wrong

• B) Forty credits is the requirement for fully insured status, not for the lower currently insured threshold for someone under 24.
• C) Ten credits does not match the six-credit rule for individuals under age 24.
• D) Twenty credits is not the statutory threshold for currently insured status at any described age.

Memory hook

Under 24, six credits in three years earns currently insured. Forty credits is the fully insured finish line.

Why A is correct

Under the Social Security program, a worker under age 24 is currently insured if the worker earned 6 credits in the 3-year period ending when disability began. The number of credits required for current insured status is scaled to the worker's age so younger workers, who have had less time in the workforce, can still qualify. The standard fully insured status, by contrast, requires 40 credits over a longer career. Understanding the distinction between currently insured and fully insured status is a tested objective under Social Security Disability coverage on the California exam.

Why the other options are wrong

• B) 40 credits is the requirement for fully insured status generally. It is not the reduced standard that applies to a worker under age 24 who is seeking currently insured status.
• C) Twenty credits in the last 10 years is a disability-insured requirement that applies to older workers. It is not the under-24 standard of 6 credits in the last 3 years.
• D) Twelve credits in six years is not the statutory standard. The rule for a worker under 24 is 6 credits earned within the 3-year period ending with the onset of disability.

Memory hook

Under 24, need only 6 credits in 3 years. Youth gets a discount on the disability-work test.

Why B is correct

A worker is currently insured if he or she has at least 6 credits during the 13-quarter period (approximately three years) ending with the quarter of death, disability, or entitlement. For a young worker under age 24, this means 6 credits earned in the last three years — a year and a half of covered work — is enough to qualify dependents and survivors for certain benefits. This is a lower requirement than being fully insured, which generally requires 40 credits over a lifetime and opens the full range of retirement and survivor benefits.

Why the other options are wrong

• A) Forty credits over a lifetime establishes fully insured status, which is a higher standard than currently insured.
• C) There is no 12-credits-in-one-year test for currently insured status.
• D) Twenty credits by any time before age 60 is not a recognized Social Security insured-status test.

Memory hook

6 credits in the last 3 years keeps a young worker 'currently' insured.