If you move to the US at 55 work for 10 years and then retire SS is an great return on investment but it's still a tax. What you pay in and what you get out are somewhat related, but there is no advantage to working from 18 - 67 at minimum wage and paying into SS over investing that money in the same time period. They just look at your 30 highest income years which is great for people who don't enter the job market till mid 20's but it sucks for those who skip collage and work till retirement age. They have almost 50 years to save and invest and SS still does not fully replace their salary.