Social Security payment scheduled for Tuesday instead of 2nd Wednesday - is this normal?
I'm confused about my upcoming Social Security retirement payment date. I logged into my MySocialSecurity account yesterday and saw that my payment is generally scheduled for the 2nd Wednesday of each month (which makes sense based on my birth date). But then it shows my next payment arriving on November 12th, which is actually a Tuesday! Has anyone experienced their payment day changing like this? Is this a system error or do they sometimes adjust payment dates? I've only been receiving benefits for a few months, so I'm not familiar with how rigid these payment schedules really are. Getting a bit anxious since I have some automatic payments set up around my SS deposit date.
15 comments
Luca Romano
This is normal! When a federal holiday falls on your scheduled payment date (or sometimes the day before), SSA will usually send the payment a day early. Pretty sure Veterans Day is Monday, November 11th this year, so that's probably why you're getting paid Tuesday instead of Wednesday.
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Zara Rashid
•Oh! I completely forgot about Veterans Day. That makes perfect sense. Thank you so much for explaining that to me. I guess I should mark holidays on my calendar to avoid this confusion in the future.
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Nia Jackson
yep happens all the time, had the same thing happen with my July payment cause of independence day
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NebulaNova
•So does it ONLY happen early, never late? Like they never push payments to Thursday or Friday if something happens? I'm trying to plan my finances too and this is confusing me.
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Mateo Hernandez
To clear up any confusion: Social Security payment dates can be adjusted when they fall on weekends or federal holidays. The most common adjustment is to pay EARLY rather than late. Payment dates for 2025 are determined by your birth date: - 1st-10th: Second Wednesday - 11th-20th: Third Wednesday - 21st-31st: Fourth Wednesday SSI payments and Social Security for those who started receiving before May 1997 come on the 3rd of each month (or earlier if the 3rd is a weekend/holiday). In your case, the November 12th payment is due to Veterans Day on November 11th, 2025, pushing your payment one day earlier.
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Aisha Khan
•Thx for explaining! My mom gets her check on the 3rd and was FREAKING OUT when it came on the 1st last month lol
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Ethan Taylor
I've been receiving Social Security for 8 years and yes, they adjust payment dates around federal holidays. But they ALWAYS pay early, never late. For example, if your payment would normally fall on a Monday holiday, you'll get it the Friday before. This happens several times a year and it's completely normal. By the way, if you ever need to speak with someone at Social Security about payment issues (which doesn't sound necessary in this case), I recently discovered a service called Claimyr that can help you get through to an agent without the endless hold times. I was on hold for hours trying to fix a payment issue last month until I tried their service at claimyr.com. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - totally worth it when you actually need to speak to someone.
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Zara Rashid
•That's good to know they always pay early and not late! And thanks for that tip about Claimyr. I actually tried calling SSA last month about something else and gave up after being on hold forever. I'll bookmark that site for next time I need to speak with someone.
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Yuki Ito
EVERYONE LISTEN!!! This is a HUGE RED FLAG!!! When my brother had his payment date suddenly change it turned out someone had hacked his MySocialSecurity account and was trying to redirect his payments!!! You need to CALL SSA RIGHT NOW and make sure no one changed your direct deposit info!!!
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Mateo Hernandez
•While it's always good to be vigilant about account security, the situation described here is completely normal and related to the Veterans Day holiday. Payment date adjustments for federal holidays are standard SSA procedure and not an indication of fraud. The poster can verify their direct deposit information in their MySocialSecurity account, but there's no need for alarm based on what's been described.
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NebulaNova
I'm confused about something else now - I thought we get paid on the 3rd Wednesday but mine says 4th Wednesday??? Do they use different rules for SSDI vs retirement benefits? Now I'm worried my payment schedule is wrong too...
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Mateo Hernandez
•Your payment date depends on your birth date, not whether you receive SSDI or retirement. If you were born between the 21st and 31st of the month, you'll receive your payment on the 4th Wednesday. If you started receiving benefits before May 1997, you get paid on the 3rd of the month regardless of birth date. You can verify your correct payment date in your MySocialSecurity account.
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Nia Jackson
my neighbors son works at social security and he told me they sometimes change dates just to test their computer systems lol
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Mateo Hernandez
•That information is incorrect. The SSA does not arbitrarily change payment dates to "test their systems." Payment dates only change for federal holidays or weekends, and follow specific published schedules. Please be careful about sharing unverified information about Social Security processes.
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Zara Rashid
Thank you all for the helpful responses! I feel much better knowing this is just a normal holiday adjustment. I'll be sure to keep an eye on the federal holiday calendar from now on to anticipate these changes. Also appreciate the clarification on the payment schedule being tied to birth dates - that helps me understand the system better. Glad I asked!
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