The Social Security Administration’s payment schedule makes it easy for pensioners in the United States to know on what day they will cash their new retirement benefit check. Thanks to the information that Social Security provides each year, American retirees can plan their household finances so that they encounter fewer financial problems each month.
Also, to find out the day on which each pensioner receives one of these checks, we don’t need too much personal information. The Social Security Administration sends the checks with the established amount to the pensioners on three different days. On each of these days, different pensioners receive their benefit check.
The birthday is the information Social Security takes to determine on what date a retiree will find his or her pension money in his or her bank account. The system adopted by Social Security to send these payments in three different check mailings serves to keep the system from collapsing so that payments are not delayed at any time.
Who gets the next Social Security check?
The group of pensioners who will receive the next of the Social Security Administration’s retirement checks is made up of retirees born between the 11th and 20th of the month. And it doesn’t matter which month, so in March, pensioners born in March, July or September can collect their benefit.
Nor does it matter what type of pension we have. In this way, pensioners who retire because of age, disability, blindness or for some other reason will get their check on the same day. The only important thing is the exact day of the birthday. The rest of the information does not determine the day on which a pensioner receives a check from Social Security.
What do I need to do to collect my pension as soon as possible?
There are two ways to cash a Social Security check, although many people believe there is a third way. Hundreds of Americans believe that to this day the Administration still sends checks in physical form by mail, but that is not true. That method is used in very exceptional cases, since the SSA only pays by bank account or Direct Deposit.
In order to receive this payment or any other Social Security payment as soon as possible, we must activate Direct Deposit. If you have activated this method of collecting your retirement payments, you will not have to wait a minute to be able to use the money. At the exact moment that the SSA pays our retirement, we will receive the money and we will be able to pay whatever we want with it.
On the other hand, if we have activated the payment by bank transfer we may have to wait. The maximum wait is usually 3 days, but it does not depend on the Social Security Administration, but on the bank.
When will I get my Social Security if I am not in this group of retirees?
If you were not born between the 11th and 20th of the month, there is nothing to worry about, as the government will still pay us the check. Having the benefit accepted is more than enough to be able to receive the money every month.
So if you were born between the 21st and 31st, your Social Security check will be in your pocket within the next week. To be exact, the payment day for this group of retirees is next March 22nd. Likewise, retirees born between the 1st and 10th of the month received their check with payment last March 8th, which was the second Wednesday of the month.
This scheme repeats itself, so we have to be attentive to the following dates:
- Second Wednesday of the month: Social Security payment to pensioners born between the 1st and 10th.
- Third Wednesday of the month: Pensioners with birthdays between the 11th and 20th receive their check.
- Fourth Wednesday of the month: Pensioners with birthdays between the 21st and 31st receive their money on this day.
With this calendar it is easier to know on which day one of the monthly checks sent by the SSA will be available to us.
Is it possible to increase my retirement benefit check?
It is possible to increase the amount of the monthly checks from the Social Security Administration as long as we have not started to cash them. To be more precise, it is possible to increase the check when we have already applied for it, but it is quite complicated.
In order to be able to increase the check and reach the $4,558 maximum, or get very close to it, we need a good retirement plan. In this plan, we have to take into account the retirement age, the years as a worker and the salary during those years. Maximizing these three elements, our benefit will be much higher.
Although it is true that the minimum age to apply for retirement is 62, it is not advisable to do so. If we apply for check at 62 we will see a 30% discount on our benefit. This can make a big difference on many occasions. That is why it is better to wait until the age of 67, since then we will get 100% of the money contributed.
On the other hand, the years worked and the salary during these are two equally important elements. Working a minimum of 35 years is key to get a good Social Security check. And if we have a high salary, it will be easier to get a high benefit. These two elements combined with the retirement age make our benefit higher or lower.
In short, in order to have a good monthly check we need to work for 35 years with a good salary, in addition to applying for retirement at age 67 or later. If we retire at age 70 we could reach the maximum check of $4,558, but sometimes it is not worth waiting that long.