Thursday, July 3rd, marked the first payment date this month for certain Social Security retirement recipients. Folks who started getting their retirement, disability, or survivors benefits (what the government calls RSDI) before May 1997 saw money hit their bank accounts that day. It’s always good to check your statement if you fall in this group.
Same day brought money for SSI recipients too — that’s the Supplemental Security Income program helping people with limited resources. Normally these payments come on the 1st, but this month things worked out differently. Even though July 1st was a Tuesday, some payment schedules got synced up with the regular Social Security dates.
Who gets paid when this month
Coming up next week on July 9th, another batch of payments goes out. This one’s for people born between the 1st and 10th of any month. My neighbor Betty, whose birthday is July 7th, always jokes she gets first dibs on the monthly checks. About 70 million Americans will see their money on this date.
The following Wednesday, July 16th, covers those with birthdays from the 11th to 20th. Then the last group — folks born between the 21st and 31st — get their turn on Wednesday, July 23rd.
About the COLA increase
Remember that cost-of-living adjustment that kicked in back in January? Yeah, the 2.5% bump means most checks are running about $50 fatter these days. Not life-changing money, but every bit helps with groceries getting pricier. Average payments now hover around $1,976 monthly, while the maximum possible is $5,108.
Now here’s something that’s got people talking – starting this month, Social Security can take back up to half of someone’s check if they were overpaid before. Some cases might even see the whole check held back. “It’s putting folks between a rock and a hard place,” said one local senior center director I spoke with. There are hardship exceptions, but you’ve got to jump through some hoops to qualify.
If your money’s late, here’s what to do
We’ve all been there – waiting on a payment that’s taking its sweet time. The folks at Social Security say give it three full business days before hitting the panic button. First thing’s first – log into your mySocialSecurity account to make sure all your info’s current.
Still nothing? Call your bank before you call Social Security. Sometimes it’s just a delay on their end. If the bank hasn’t seen anything, that’s when you want to ring up SSA at 1-800-772-1213 or stop by your local office. Bring some patience though — wait times can be terrible this time of month.
Mark Your Calendar
Quick recap for July:
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July 3rd: Early birds (pre-1997) and SSI folks
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July 9th: First birthdays recipients (1st-10th)
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July 16th: Mid-month birthdays (11th-20th)
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July 23rd: End-of-month birthdays (21st-31st)
Heads up for August: SSI recipients get two payments (1st and 29th), but then September skips because the 1st falls on a Sunday. Gotta love how government payment schedules work, right?