A major Social Security payment worth up to $1,415 will be sent to millions of Americans today.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a monthly government benefit that can reach up to $943 for an individual and $1,415 for a couple.
The beneficiaries of the checks receive the benefit on the first day of the month, that is, today, Tuesday, October 1.
Anyone over 65, blind or disabled, and with limited income is eligible for SSI. according to the social security administration.
About 68 million Americans receive some type of Social Security benefit each month, but the payments are staggered because of the large number of them that need to be processed.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is paid on the first of each month
Retirement checks are staggered on three different days each month.
If you are born between the 1st and 10th of any month, you should receive your monthly check on the second Wednesday of the month, so in October it falls on the 9th.
Those born in the next category, between 11 and 20, received their check on the third Wednesday of the month, October 16.
Those born between the 21st and 31st of a given month will receive their check on the fourth Wednesday, which falls on October 23rd.
The exception to this program is for those who have been claiming Social Security since 1997, or claim both retirement benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
This group received their payments the first week of the month, Thursday, October 3.
The SSA recommends waiting three business days after the due date before contacting them about a late payment.
The highest retirement payments amount to $4,873, although the figure is likely to be lower for most recipients.
In fact, the average monthly retirement check is $1,907, a figure that takes into account the 35 highest earning years in a beneficiary’s career and adjusts for inflation.
‘The maximum benefit depends on the retirement age. For example, if you retire at full retirement age in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $3,822,’ the SSA states on its website.
‘However, if you retire at age 62 in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $2,710.
“If you retire at age 70 in 2024, your maximum benefit would be $4,873,” the site explains.
Total payments, including retirement, disability and survivor payments, now cost the government about $1.5 trillion a year.
Meanwhile, Americans living in nine states will collect less Social Security starting this month due to increased taxes.
Recipients who live in Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, or West Virginia may have to pay more.
Total Social Security payments now cost the government about $1.5 trillion a year.
The exact impact will depend on the state you live in and your overall income.
It also emerged earlier this year that Social Security is expected to run out of funds by 2035.
The program relies on its trust funds to provide monthly benefit checks to about 70 million Americans.
But an aging population is driving up the cost of the program as a smaller proportion of people are contributing to it and spending is outpacing income.
The last annual report of the Social Security Board of Directors concluded that the program will only be able to pay full benefits for the next 11 years, one year longer than previous estimates.