Social Security check timing confusion - when does the 8th month in FRA calculation actually pay?
I'm turning my full retirement age (66 and 8 months) this September and trying to figure out exactly when I should expect my first full Social Security check. I'm confused about the timing and months. If September is when I reach FRA, would my first FULL check be for May (since that would technically be the 8th month in the calculation), or would it be June, or even July? I've read about the month of entitlement versus the payment month and now I'm totally confused. Anyone who's recently gone through this know how it actually works? I don't want to mess this up by applying at the wrong time!
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Yara Nassar
your first check wont be for may. SS always pays a month behind so your September FRA means October would be the first payment. if you apply for the month you hit FRA (September) youll get paid in October for September benefits
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QuantumQuester
•Thanks for responding. So even though I'm FRA in September, I couldn't get a check for May, June, July or August at the full amount? I thought once you hit your FRA month you got your full amount regardless? This is so confusing!
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Keisha Williams
There's some confusion here that needs clearing up. Your Full Retirement Age is 66 and 8 months, which you reach in September. However, this doesn't mean you get retroactive payments at full value for the previous 8 months. If you apply for benefits to start in September (your FRA month), your first payment would arrive in October (Social Security pays one month behind). You would receive your full benefit amount with no reduction. You can choose to start benefits earlier than your FRA, but they would be permanently reduced. For example, if you started at 65, you'd face about a 7.5% reduction from your full benefit amount. You can also request up to 6 months of retroactive benefits AFTER reaching FRA, but no more than that, and you can't request retroactive benefits that would start before your FRA. Does that help clarify?
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Paolo Ricci
•My neighbor said I could get backpay for 12 months when I hit FRA!!! Now I'm even more confused
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Keisha Williams
•Your neighbor is incorrect. SSA allows up to 6 months of retroactive benefits once you've reached FRA, not 12 months. And those retroactive months cannot extend to before your FRA. This is a common misconception. For the original poster: If you reach FRA in September, the earliest month for which you could receive a retroactive full benefit payment would be March (assuming you apply in September or later and specifically request the 6-month retroactive payment).
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Amina Toure
I just went through this EXACT scenario last year!!! My FRA was 66 + 6 months which I hit in July. I applied in June (month before FRA) and specifically requested my benefits to start in July (my FRA month). My first actual payment showed up August 3rd, which was for July benefits. The SSA rep told me I could have requested up to 6 months retroactive benefits AFTER reaching FRA, but those months would all have to be AFTER my FRA date, not before. So in your case, if you want your FULL (unreduced) benefit amount, the earliest month you can receive benefits for is September, which will be paid in October. If you start benefits before September, they'll be permanently reduced - even if only by a month or two.
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QuantumQuester
•Thank you! This is really helpful. So I definitely can't get May/June/July at my full benefit amount no matter what? I need to wait for September to be eligible for my full benefit amount? I was hoping to double-dip somehow 😅
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Oliver Zimmermann
Your FRA being "66 and 8 months" just means that's when you qualify for 100% of your benefit. The "8 months" part doesn't mean you get 8 months of something special. If you take it in May you'd get a reduced amount permanently. If you wait till September you get your full amount. Simple as that!
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QuantumQuester
•Ahhhh! I think I see where my confusion was coming from. I was thinking the "8 months" part had something to do with when I could start receiving checks. Thanks for clearing that up!
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CosmicCommander
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QuantumQuester
•I might need to try this. I've called three times and either got disconnected or was on hold for over an hour before giving up. Thanks for the suggestion.
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Paolo Ricci
•does this actually work?? seems sketchy to me
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CosmicCommander
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Natasha Volkova
I work with retirees and can clear this up precisely: 1. Your FRA is 66 years and 8 months, which you reach in September 2025. 2. The "8 months" in "66 and 8 months" has nothing to do with which months you get paid for. It simply defines the exact age at which you qualify for unreduced benefits. 3. Social Security benefits are paid in the month following the month for which they are due. September benefits are paid in October. 4. If you want your FIRST check to be your FULL benefit amount, then September is the earliest month you could receive benefits for (paid in October). 5. You CAN apply up to 4 months before you want benefits to begin. So if you want September benefits, you could apply as early as May. 6. After reaching FRA, you can request retroactive benefits for up to 6 months, but they cannot begin before your FRA month. Bottom line: May, June, July, and August would all be REDUCED benefits if you choose to start then. Only September or later would be full benefits.
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QuantumQuester
•Thank you SO much for this detailed explanation! I think I understand now. I was confusing my age (66 and 8 months) with some kind of payment schedule. So the earliest I can get my FULL benefit is for the month of September, which I'll actually receive in October. If I want benefits before that, they'll be permanently reduced. This makes perfect sense now!
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Paolo Ricci
my sister got backpay for 3 monts when she retired last yr but she had to ask for it specially. they dont tell u about this stuff on purpose!!!
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Natasha Volkova
•Your sister likely applied after her FRA and requested retroactive benefits, which can go back up to 6 months but not before FRA. The SSA doesn't automatically assume you want retroactive benefits - you have to specifically request them because some people prefer to establish a later entitlement date for other reasons, such as Medicare timing or tax planning.
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Amina Toure
Everyone keeps talking about "reduced benefits" before FRA but no one mentioned exactly HOW reduced. For someone with an FRA of 66 and 8 months, taking benefits just 4 months early (in May instead of September) would result in a reduction of about 2.2% from your full benefit amount. That's PERMANENT - meaning for the rest of your life, your benefit would be 97.8% of what it could have been. Whether that trade-off is worth it depends on your financial situation. Just something to consider!
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QuantumQuester
•That's really helpful context, thank you! A 2.2% reduction isn't huge, but over many years of retirement it could add up. I need to think about whether getting payments a few months earlier is worth the permanent reduction.
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