How long after filing for Social Security retirement benefits will my husband's payments actually start?
I'm a bit anxious about our financial planning. My husband (he's 67) just filed for his Social Security retirement benefits last week on February 9th, 2025. He requested for benefits to begin immediately on his filing date. The claims specialist said something about a 'month of entitlement' but honestly I was so nervous I didn't fully process everything she said. Does anyone know approximately when his first payment will actually arrive? We're trying to coordinate some bill payments and need to know if we should expect something in March or if it typically takes longer? Also, will he get paid for the partial month of February or does SS only pay for full months starting in March? The uncertainty is killing me!
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StormChaser
Social Security pays benefits in the month AFTER they're due. So if your husband's benefits start in February 2025, he'll get his first payment in March 2025. Specifically, payment dates are based on birth date: - Birth dates 1st-10th: Second Wednesday - Birth dates 11th-20th: Third Wednesday - Birth dates 21st-31st: Fourth Wednesday Check his birth date to know which Wednesday in March he'll get paid. And yes, if his entitlement date is February 9th, he'll get a partial payment for February (paid in March).
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Sofia Gomez
•Thank you so much! His birthday is on the 17th, so I guess that means the third Wednesday of March. Do they notify you before the payment arrives or it just shows up in your account?
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Dmitry Petrov
When my husband filed for SS last year it took almost 6 WEEKS before the first payment showed up!!! The SSA is so backed up right now it's ridiculous. And then they only gave him partial payment for the first month even though he filed on the 3rd of the month. They said something about 'prorating' but I think they just mess up constantly. KEEP CALLING THEM until you get answers!!!
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StormChaser
•That sounds unusual. While processing can take time, a 6-week delay for retirement benefits (not disability) is longer than typical. The proration is actually correct though - they pay based on the exact entitlement date.
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Ava Williams
congrats on ur husband filing! my dad just got his first payment and it showed up exactly on the wednesday they said it would. no delays at all. but he did direct deposit, maybe thats why it was fast?
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Sofia Gomez
•We did set up direct deposit as well, so that's reassuring to hear. Did your dad get any kind of notification before the deposit happened?
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Miguel Castro
I just went through this process last month. Here's what will happen: The first payment will arrive in March on his payment day (based on birth date as mentioned above). Regarding your February partial month question: Yes, he will receive a prorated amount for February starting from his entitlement date (2/9/25). This partial payment will be included with his first payment in March. If you need to verify his application status before then, good luck getting through on the phone. I spent 3 days trying and kept getting disconnected or told the wait was over 2 hours.
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Zainab Ibrahim
•I had the same awful experience trying to call SSA. After getting disconnected 4 times, I found a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - saved me hours of frustration when I needed to check on my missing payment.
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Connor O'Neill
Quick question related to this - does it matter if you file online vs. in person at the SSA office for how fast your payments start? I'm about to file myself next month and wondering if one method is faster.
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LunarEclipse
•In my experience it makes no difference AT ALL. I filed at the office thinking it would be faster, and my sister filed online. We both got our first payments the same way - on the designated payment day of the month after filing. The benefit START date is what matters, not how you apply.
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Ava Williams
wait i just remembered my dad did get a letter in the mail from SSA like 10 days after he applied. it had all the payment info and when to expect the first deposit. ur husband should get something like that soon probably
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Sofia Gomez
•That's helpful to know - we'll keep an eye out for that letter. It would definitely help with our peace of mind to have something in writing.
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StormChaser
One last thing to note - if your husband filed on 2/9/25 and requested benefits to begin immediately, his official month of entitlement will be February 2025. His first payment (arriving in March) will include the prorated February amount. Just be aware that if this is his Full Retirement Age (which sounds likely at 67), there's no advantage to specifying the start date as his filing date vs. the start of the month. If he's at or past FRA, he could actually request retroactive benefits for up to 6 months (depending on when he reached FRA).
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Sofia Gomez
•Oh! I didn't realize that about possibly getting retroactive benefits. He just turned 67 in January so I think he just hit his FRA. I wonder if we should call and ask about changing his application to request some retroactive benefits. That could really help with some expenses we have coming up.
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LunarEclipse
I think everyone here is missing the MOST IMPORTANT POINT. Make sure your husband created his my Social Security account online! That's where you can see the status of his application, when payments will arrive, and set up or change direct deposit. The website is ssa.gov/myaccount and it's WAY easier than calling or going to an office.
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Miguel Castro
•This is excellent advice. The online account shows your payment history, benefit verification, and even has a message center where they sometimes post updates about your application status. Much more efficient than waiting on hold for hours.
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