Social Security beneficiaries are due to receive the first set of May payments this week, with officials sticking to the programme's routine payment calendar.
The benefits, paid mainly to retirees and older Americans, are usually released on Wednesdays. Here's what to expect from this week's payment cycle.
Who Will Get Paid And When?
According to the Social Security Administration's (SSA) payment schedule, beneficiaries born between the 1st and 10th of any month are due to receive their monthly benefits on Wednesday, May 13.
The majority of Social Security recipients, primarily pensioners and senior citizens, receive their monthly benefits on Wednesdays.
According to the SSA's schedule, payments are staggered based on beneficiaries' birth dates. Those born between the 1st and 10th are paid on the second Wednesday of the month, recipients born from the 11th to the 20th receive payments on the third Wednesday, and those born later in the month are paid on the fourth Wednesday.
People who have been collecting Social Security since before May 1997 can usually expect their monthly payment to arrive on the third of the month, provided the date does not fall on a holiday or weekend.
For beneficiaries receiving both Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the latter payment is generally issued on the first day of the month, while Social Security payments are sent on the third.
Recipients of SSI benefits are usually paid on the first business day of the month. For May, that payment date fell on Friday, May 1.
While Social Security is widely associated with retirement support for older adults, the programme also provides financial assistance to people with limited means, senior citizens aged 65 or older, visually impaired individuals, people with qualifying disabilities and children eligible under disability provisions.
Monthly benefit amounts can differ considerably depending on when a person chooses to retire. The highest possible payment of $5,181 a month is available only to those who consistently earn the maximum taxable income and delay retirement claims until turning 70.
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