February 21st, 2024 will be an important day for a group of United States citizens. This group of Americans is the one that will get the new Social Security retirement check. In order to obtain it we must meet a couple of mandatory requirements.
If we meet both requirements we will have access to a check of up to $4,873. It is true that not all Americans are eligible for such a high payment, but the check could be close depending on our particular case.
The important thing in these cases is to have the check accepted. If we have it, we already know more or less how much money Social Security will send us. Each month we will get the same amount of retirement benefit. It will only change once a year when the annual COLA is applied.
But it’s still too early to talk about the COLA, since it will be announced in October or so. So the check you got last January will be the same check you get this February.
Who can get the new February 21st Social Security check?
As we have already discussed, in order to get this benefit you need to meet two requirements. These two requirements are directly linked to the retiree’s personal information. If you meet both of them, you will be able to collect the February 21st Social Security check.
On the one hand, it is mandatory to have a birthday between the 11th and 20th of the month. Only beneficiaries who have a birthday between these days belong to group 3 of retirees, who will collect in the next week. In addition, it is also necessary to have applied for the Social Security benefit as of May 1997.
If you do not meet these requirements, you can still get the payment, but on a different day of the month. Remember that the Social Security Administration sends out a retirement payment on four different days of the month and each group can get one of these checks.
Maximum Social Security retirement amount
While it is true that the maximum Social Security amount in 2024 is $4,873, it is also true that not all beneficiaries reach this check. In order to reach that figure, we must maximize Social Security when we are working.
To do this, what we must do is work for a minimum of 35 years. During those 35 years we must have a high salary. The more taxes we pay during our working years, the more money we will get when we retire.
Finally, another fundamental aspect to collect a high Social Security payment is the retirement age. At age 62 we can ask for a monthly payment, but it will be a small check. So it is best to wait until at least age 67 before retiring.