Social Security payment received for August but September payment missing - normal or problem?
I started receiving my SS retirement benefits last month (got my first direct deposit on August 3rd), but here we are almost halfway through September and nothing has shown up in my account yet. Is this normal for the second payment to be delayed? I thought SS payments were supposed to be consistent each month. Do I need to call SSA about this, or is there some kind of waiting period between the first and second payments that I don't know about? Getting a bit worried since my mortgage is due soon and I was counting on this money.
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AstroAce
Social Security payments are made on a specific schedule based on your birth date. If you were born between the 1st-10th of the month, you get paid on the 2nd Wednesday. 11th-20th get paid on the 3rd Wednesday. 21st-31st get paid on the 4th Wednesday. The only exception is if you started receiving benefits before May 1997 or if you're receiving both SS and SSI - then you get paid on the 3rd of each month. So your payment date may be different from when you got your first payment. What's your birth date (just the day, not month/year)?
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Andre Laurent
•I was born on the 27th, so that would be the 4th Wednesday? But my first payment came on the 3rd of August, not on a Wednesday at all. That's why I'm confused.
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Zoe Kyriakidou
Your first payment is often processed differently than your regular monthly payments. The timing of subsequent payments follows the schedule based on your birth date as mentioned above. Since you were born on the 27th, your normal payment date will be the 4th Wednesday of each month. For September 2025, that would be September 24th. So you haven't missed your payment - it's just not scheduled to arrive until then. This can be confusing because the first payment often arrives at a different time than your regular schedule.
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Andre Laurent
•Thank you! That explains it. I had no idea the payment schedule worked like that. So I'll get my September payment on the 24th, and then October's payment on the 4th Wednesday of October? I wish the SSA had explained this to me when I applied!
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Jamal Brown
ya this happens to everyone!! i was sooo worried too when i got my first check in february and then nothing in march until like the end of the month. thought they forgot about me lol. but its just how they do it, first check comes whenever and then the rest come on your birthday schedule
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Mei Zhang
Oh man, I PANICKED about this exact same thing when I started getting my SSDI last year!! Called SSA like 25 times and couldn't get through to anyone. Finally got my neighbor's son to help me look it up online. Turns out the payment schedule is SUPER confusing and they don't explain it AT ALL when you apply!!! Just wait until tax season comes around - that's a whole other headache with these benefits!
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Liam McConnell
•I spent THREE HOURS trying to get through to someone at SSA when I had a similar issue. The phone system is absolutely terrible - it just disconnects you after waiting forever. I finally discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to a real person in about 15 minutes instead of waiting for hours or getting disconnected. Saved my sanity! They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU But yeah, for this specific issue, it's just the normal payment schedule. Nothing to worry about.
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Amara Oluwaseyi
My sister had the same problem. Turns out there was nothing wrong.
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CosmicCaptain
The SSA payment system is DELIBERATELY confusing!!! They hope people miss payments so they can keep OUR MONEY longer!!! I've been fighting with them for 3 years about incorrect payments and they just give me the runaround every time. Double-check EVERYTHING they send you and keep ALL your paperwork!!!
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AstroAce
•That's not accurate. The payment schedule is designed to distribute the workload throughout the month. The Social Security Administration processes over 65 million payments each month, and staggering them by birth date helps manage this enormous task. It's not about keeping anyone's money longer - the payment dates are fixed and predictable once you understand the system.
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Jamal Brown
wait i just realized u said u got paid august 3rd - were u getting SSI too or just regular retirement? cuz if ur getting both that might explain the 3rd date
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Andre Laurent
•Just regular retirement benefits. I think what the others said makes sense - first payment comes whenever it's processed, and then regular payments follow the birth date schedule. I'll wait until the 24th and see what happens.
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AstroAce
One additional tip: you can create a my Social Security account at ssa.gov if you haven't already. It will show you your benefit payment dates and amounts, and you can see exactly when your next payment is scheduled. It's very helpful for keeping track of everything.
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Andre Laurent
•Great idea - I'll set that up today. Thanks again everyone for helping me understand this!
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