After decades of paying into Social Security, you're finally ready to get some money back out of the program. All that's left to do is navigate the sign-up process. It sounds pretty simple in theory, but if you want it to go as smoothly as possible, you need to do the following three things in advance. Feel free to start them right now, even if you don't plan to sign up for Social Security for another few months.

The Social Security Administration already has some information about you on file, including the amount of money you've paid Social Security taxes on during your working years. But it still needs some personal information and documents from you to verify your identity and set up your direct deposit.

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Source Fool.com