Social Security checks worth up to $4,873 will arrive today, November 1.
The retirement benefit is sent to Americans who have claimed Social Security since 1997.
Those who claim both retirement and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will receive their retirement check today and their SSI on November 3.
Those who only receive SSI, a monthly government benefit that can amount to $943 for an individual and $1,415 for a couple, will receive the payment today.
Social Security checks are staggered over four different days each month because about 68 million Americans receive some type of benefit and such a large volume cannot be processed all at once.
The first Social Security benefit of the month will be sent today, November 1
The date you receive your check depends on when you were born.
If you are born between the 1st and 10th of a given month, you should receive your monthly check on the second Wednesday of the month, November 13th.
Those born between the 11th and the 20th should receive their check on the third Wednesday of the month, falling on November 20th.
Those born between the 21st and 31st of any month will receive their check on the fourth Wednesday, November 27th.
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.
Total Social Security payments now cost the government about $1.5 trillion a year.
‘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 have collected less Social Security since September due to an increase in taxes.
Recipients who live in Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, or West Virginia may have to pay more.
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 share 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.