The Social Security Administration (SSA) reconfirmed just in time that retirement benefit payments for April 2025 will be distributed on the 16th and 23rd of the month, for groups 2 and 3 of beneficiaries, since group 1 already received its payment on April 9. These dates, aligned with the third and fourth Wednesdays, are determined by the beneficiaries’ date of birth, according to the official SSA calendar.
Those born between the 11th and 20th of any month will receive their funds on April 16. Those with birthdays between 21th and 31th will receive the allocated amount on April 23. Payments on the second Wednesday (April 9) correspond to those born from the 1st to the 10th, while beneficiaries who collect since before May 1997 or receive SSI will get their payment on April 3.
Maximum Social Security amounts that increased: Up to an extra $6,700 for some
According to projections derived from official data, approximately 17.5 million people will collect on April 16, while 19.3 million will do so on the 23rd. These calculations assume a uniform distribution of birthdates among the 54.3 million beneficiaries registered the previous year, excluding those who receive payments on the 3rd: this group is those beneficiaries who began claiming their benefits before May 1997, or who receive both Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). In total, all beneficiary groups add up to more than 70 million recipients.
Maximum Social Security benefit amounts vary depending on the age at which the claim is made. In 2025, the maximum monthly benefit is $2,831 if claimed at age 62, $4,018 if claimed at age 67 (the full retirement age for those born in 1960 or later), and $5,108 if you wait until age 70. These figures are based on maximum taxable income and official SSA calculations for those who delay applying.
Those who choose to postpone claiming their benefits until they reach age 70 will be rewarded with an 8% annual increase after reaching full retirement age (FRA). This mechanism seeks to encourage the postponement of retirement, optimizing long-term income, while giving the Social Security system a break to continue capitalizing. Cost of living adjustments (COLA) also impact these values, with a 2.5% increase in 2025 effective through December inclusive.
Why are some Social Security beneficiaries receiving up to an extra $6,700 this year?
Some beneficiaries are receiving up to an extra $6,700 due to the elimination of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) provisions, which was lauded as unfair to these American retirees. This amount reflects retroactive payments that are being distributed as part of the Social Security Fairness Act, signed in January 2025. These payments compensate beneficiaries for reduced benefits since January 2024, when the provisions stopped applying.
Eligible beneficiaries are primarily those who receive pensions from jobs not covered by Social Security, such as certain teachers, firefighters, and police officers. Approximately 2.1 million retirees and 770,000 spouses or survivors are impacted. However, not all public employees qualify; Only those with job pensions without Social Security contributions receive these increases.
The average retroactive payments, based on data through March 2025, are about $6,650 per beneficiary. Some may receive more or less depending on their benefit history. For example, a monthly increase of up to $587, reported by some sources, could result in a retroactive payment of up to $7,044 for 12 months, which is close to the figure mentioned of $6,700.
