Why is the Social Security Administration sending two checks in December?

Throughout this December 2023, those receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will have a new cost-of-living adjustment in the United States.

Due to high levels of inflation, the Social Security Administration (SSA) increased the COLA for 2024 by 3.2 percent, but unlike other Social Security recipients, that increase would be reflected starting in December 2023, not until January of the following year.

Why wait for two checks in December?

If you look in the message centre of your My Social Security account, you have a notice about your new benefit amount.

You should note that the deadline to create an account was November 14, so if you missed that date, watch for a letter in the mail with all the details about your increase.

The SSA follows a strict schedule when sending out monthly payments. For SSI recipients, your payments are almost always sent on the 1st of each month.

There are two reasons why your payment might not arrive on the first of any month: If the regular payment date falls on a holiday or weekend.

January 1, 2024 is a holiday; when this happens, the administration sends out checks by the nearest business day (in this case, a Friday).

Instead of receiving your January 2023 check in January, you will receive it on December 29th of this year.

If you receive SSI, you will receive a payment on December 29 with your new benefit amount. Since your first increased payment is scheduled for January 1 (a holiday), you will receive your first payment of 2024 early.

If you also receive Social Security benefits along with your SSI, you will only receive your SSI increase in December. Your Social Security benefit increase will begin on Wednesday, January 3.