JUST hours remain until select Americans will see the first regular Social Security payment for June drop into their bank accounts.
As the SSA distributes the checks worth up to $5,108, retirees who rely on the social program are being warned of massive delays.
Social Security beneficiaries are being warned of delays over at the SSA as the agency prepares to send out June’s first round of regular payments[/caption]
June’s first round of regular Social Security payments is set to go out in just hours, worth up to $5,108 thanks to the 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, announced on October 10.
The COLA bumped up the average monthly retirement benefit from $1,927 in 2024 to $1,976 this year, but some Americans see much higher checks each month.
Those retiring at age 70 this year are capped at $5,108 each month by the SSA, up from $4,873 last year due to the 2.5% COLA hike.
Americans who retire at their full retirement age, or FRA, this year can receive up to $4,018 monthly, while retiring at age 62 in 2025 restricts seniors to a maximum monthly payment of $2,831.
Whether or not you receive June’s first round of regular Social Security checks depends on your birthday.
The payments will be sent out tomorrow, June 11 – the second Wednesday of the month – to beneficiaries with birthdays between the 1st and the 10th of their birth month.
2025 Social Security Payment Schedule
Social Security payments are handed out on the second, third, and fourth Wednesday of each month. Benefits will be paid out in 2025 on the following dates:
- January 8, 15, and 22
- February 12, 19, and 26
- March 12, 19, and 26
- April 9, 16, and 23
- May 14, 21, and 28
- June 11, 18, and 25
- July 9, 16, and 23
- August 13, 20, and 27
- September 10, 17, and 24
- October 8, 15, and 22
- November 12, 19, and 26
- December 10, 17, and 24
Americans born between the 11th and 20th of their birth month will have to wait until June 18, the third Wednesday of the month, for their checks to drop.
The last round of regular Social Security payments for June will go out on the fourth Wednesday of the month, June 25, to individuals with birthdays between the 21st and 31st.
Americans who started claiming Social Security before May 1997 should have received their payment last week on June 3.
DELAY DRAMA
As the SSA prepares to send out millions of payments tomorrow, workers at the federal agency are warning Americans of potential delays due to a big change.
The passage of the Social Security Fairness Act into law on January 5 by former President Joe Biden has resulted in millions of new claims for staff to sort through, now being prioritized over daily tasks.
The new law eliminated the controversial Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset, meaning that roughly 3.2 million public sector employees qualify for bigger Social Security payments.
Others may see their first Social Security check as the SSA axes the two provisions, which previously affected benefits for Americans who also received pensions from work not covered by Social Security.
Roughly 2.3 million Fairness Act claims have already been processed using automation, according to White House spokesperson Liz Huston.
WEP and GPO
The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset, federal laws that have been in place for nearly 40 years, were officially eliminated when the Social Security Fairness Act was passed.
Windfall Elimination Provision:
- Impacts pension recipients who also work another job covered by Social Security
- The Social Security benefit is usually reduced by around 50%, but it cannot be reduced to zero
Government Pension Offset:
- Impacts pension recipients who also qualify for spousal Social Security benefits
- Reduces two-thirds of the PSRS benefit, typically eliminating the entire spousal Social Security benefit
The remaining 900,000 cases must be completed by hand due to their complexity, with Social Security staff being instructed to prioritize the cases over their routine work.
The original completion date for the over 3.2 million Fairness Act claims was set in November, but the new Social Security commissioner Frank Bisignano is now pressuring workers to get them done by July 1.
White House officials have said the additional workload will not impact other Social Security recipients.
“This project is very important to leadership and it’s critical the agency executes it swiftly, efficiently, and without letting anything else fall through the cracks,” said Huston.
However, several Social Security employees have said otherwise, warning of massive delays as their routine tasks are deprioritized.
Common requests such as address or bank account changes, for example, may potentially taking longer, employees told USA Today.
Some beneficiaries could experience delays or even stopped benefits as workers are being instructed to put key tasks, such as switching direct deposit details or fixing issues with Medicaid billing, on the backburner.
Read up on these other switch ups underway at the federal agency.
Social Security recipients are crying “I’m screwed” as a “pitiful” new age change starts this year – and millions are impacted.
Meanwhile, the Social Security chief has made a defiant pledge as fears rise that benefits will be exhausted in just eight years.
The SSA may experience major delays as staff are being told to prioritize claims related to the Social Security Fairness Act[/caption]
