Social Security Announces Expedited Retroactive Payments and Higher Monthly Benefits for Millions – Actions Support the Social Security Fairness Act
Reading Time: 2 MinutesLast Updated: February 25, 2025
Today, the Social Security Administration announced it is immediately beginning to pay retroactive benefits and will increase monthly benefit payments to people whose benefits have been affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).
These provisions reduced or eliminated the Social Security benefits for over 3.2 million people who receive a pension based on work that was not covered by Social Security (a “non-covered pension”) because they did not pay Social Security taxes.
The Social Security Fairness Act ends WEP and GPO.
“Social Security’s aggressive schedule to start issuing retroactive payments in February and increase monthly benefit payments beginning in April supports President Trump’s priority to implement the Social Security Fairness Act as quickly as possible,” said Lee Dudek, Acting Commissioner of Social Security. “The agency’s original estimate of taking a year or more now will only apply to complex cases that cannot be processed by automation. The American people deserve to get their due benefits as quickly as possible.”
People who will benefit from the new law include some teachers, firefighters, and police officers in many states; federal employees covered by the Civil Service Retirement System; and people whose work had been covered by a foreign social security system.
Many beneficiaries will be due a retroactive payment because the WEP and GPO offset no longer apply as of January 2024. Most people will receive their one-time retroactive payment by the end of March, which will be deposited into their bank account on record with Social Security.
Many of these people will also receive higher monthly benefits, which will first be reflected in the benefit payment they receive in April. Depending on factors such as the type of Social Security benefit received and the amount of the person’s pension, the change in payment amount will vary from person to person.
Anyone whose monthly benefit is adjusted, or who will get a retroactive payment, will receive a mailed notice from Social Security explaining the benefit change or retroactive payment. Most people will receive their retroactive payment two to three weeks before they receive their notice in the mail, because the President understands how important it is to pay people what they are due right away. Social Security is expediting payments using automation and will continue to handle many complex cases that must be done manually, on an individual case-by-case basis. Those complex cases will take additional time to update the beneficiary record and pay the correct benefits.
Social Security urges beneficiaries to wait until April to ask about the status of their retroactive payment, since these payments will process incrementally into March. Since the new monthly payment amount will begin with the April payment, beneficiaries should wait until after receiving their April payment, before contacting Social Security with questions about their monthly benefit amount.
Visit the agency’s Social Security Fairness Act webpage to learn more and stay up to date on its progress. Visitors can subscribe to be alerted when the webpage is updated.
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walter c.
donot thank joe congress did the work putting on his desk. next we need congress to pass the doge payments , remember all money bills start in the house and they are up for election in 20 months
MaryLou H.
Will the offset reimbursement be deposited on the same date as my normal social security deposit?
Karen
So I guess fire fighters etc deserve it more than a single disabled person who barely gets by and has to live in a low income housing and be treated like a child and some ways a prisoner
Ray F.
THANK YOU PRESIDENT BIDEN, WE WOULD NOT BE GETTING THIS IF IT WEREN’T FOR YOU. YOU ROCK!!
Patricia D.
This has always been unfair to teachers who have worked and paid into SSI. THANKS for making a wrong a right
Ann
I sure do miss you President Joe Biden! Wishing the best for you & Mrs Biden in your retirement years.
What a “stupid clown” & his cabinet in the White House. Republicans in House & Senate have no “balls” to stand up against this good for nothing individual who calls himself a King!!
Ann
I sure do miss you President Joe Biden! Wishing the best for you & Mrs Biden in your retirement years.
What a “stupid clown” & his cabinet in the White House. Republicans in House & Senate have no “balls” to stand up against this good for nothing individual who calls himself a King!!
CS
Biden is not the President, Donald Trump
is the new President !
Edward M.
You are blinded by socialist rhetoric!
Ezpi
Yes!! Thank you Biden!!.
Tammy w.
This has nothing to do w Biden lol trump is the one getting your money back to u that the others stole
Jim B.
This passed the House before it went to sleepy Joe. Thank the members of the House and Senate, and let joe go back to sleep.
Terry R.
biden?… you’re an IDIOT, who is president now, president Trump is who did this, after the DOGE findings
Frank H.
Thankyou President BIDEN! for signing the SS Fairness Act into law.
James E.
James Cartwright
I’m interested in receiving additional social security Benefits
cartwrightcarty@gmail.com
Please send me additional information and details
Daphne P.
Is it for school janitors
Bill
This article doesn’t even mention how to apply
Thank God Trump’s firing these morons working federal jobs
Dave A.
THIS SHOULD BE FOR ALL RETIRES, WE ALL DID ARE PART AN SOME MORE THAN OTHERS, AS FOR TRUCKERS, WE BROUGHT YOU FOOD ,LUMBER, GAS/ FUEL ,CLOTHES ETC ,ETC , ETC .
Tina P.
I agree 1,000%! My husband has been driving 30+ years! I, personally am on disability & this upsets me because I’M GETTING NOTHING, NADA, ZILCH, ZIP, YOU GET MY POINT! I’m not only on disability but get ZERO help from ANY GOV’T AGENCY & NOW I’M BECOMING MORE & MORE CRIPPLED EACH DAY AS MY DISEASES ARE BECOMING CRIPPLING, NOT TO MENTION THAT I’VE BEEN ON 4 (F O U R) DIFFERENT BIOLOGICS WHICH ALL SEEM TO CAUSE CANCER AND I CAN’T AFFORD THEM! I’M TALKING 1 INFUSION IS NEARLY $40,000! I DON’T EVEN GET 1/2 OF THAT ANNUALLY YET NOW (I MEAN NO OFFENSE) THESE AFOREMENTIONED CERTAIN GROUP OF PEOPLE WILL NOT ONLY GET THE PENSIONS BUT NOW SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE TOO!???? HOW’S THAT FAIR TO OTHERS WHO GET A MEASLEY 2% RAISE ANNUALLY WHEN EVERYTHING COSTS MORE! MY MEDICARE COSTS ME NEARLY $200/MONTH & THEY CHANGED THE PART D ON ALL I ASSUME AND THEY’RE NOT COVERING MY MEDS & 1 MED THAT WAS $2 LAST YEAR COSTS ME $25 THIS YEAR! ANOTHER MEDICINE IS $75 WHICH ALSO WAS $2 LAST YEAR! I CAN’T EVEN FET THE MEDS FILLED, I CANNOT AFFORD THEM YET OTHERS ARE GETTING M O R E!!!???? I JUST CAN’T UNDERSTAND WHY, WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME & COUNTLESS OTHERS!???????????????????
PRESIDENT TRUMP, MR. KENNEDY, & MR. MUSK, P L E A S E P L E A S E P L E A S E
HELP US!!!!! W E. ARE. DESPERATELY IN NEED. OF. HELP!!!! I HOPE YOU SEE THIS, I & MANY COUNTLESS OTHERS HAVE TO DECIDE OVER FOOD OR MEDICINE & THAT SHOULDN’T BE HAPPENING! I WORKED SINCE I WAS 15 YEARS OLD & BARELY GET $1,200/ MONTH AFTER THEY TAKE OUT FOR MEDICARE! 💔😪
James S.
That’s the trues but they don’t think about old people
Ennis F.
If I was working at the Post office from 1966-1979. Am I included in any money?? Also what about being in the U.S. Navy from 1962-1966
??
Jonathan F.
If they reduced you social security payment to offset your retirement .
Diana P.
I’m confused, this month mine decreased by $48.00. I get so little as it is, I’m 76 and need all I earned.
Harry B.
How about giving back what was stolen from the rest of us? I am talking about reducing our benefit by 30% which is what I was told. That extra money would help us pay our utilities, make our house payment, put food on the table, pay our medical bills. You wouldn’t have to make that retroactive, just give us a raise equal to part of that or all of it. We don’t have any other income to help.
Gay L.
I agree
G. W.
I received the blog from a relative. I shared the information with several people who didn’t believe. me until I got the money in my checking account. I am so thankful, it couldn’t have come at a better time. Thank you Lord, President Biden, and the SSA staff. ❤️ 😊
Teri
That would be President TRUMP.
Leeann S.
Biden? He didn’t have anything to do with it. God and president Trump deserve the thanks. It was Biden, when he was a senator who pushed for taxing social security.
D
Thank Trump.
Delonia A.
Why was Medicare taken out of the retro payment if you have already paid it?
Theresa E.
I agree to that and they took my back money for Medicare once I got Medicaid back once that money was taken out my disability retirement money I should have gotten all of it back I didn’t apply to have a $178.00 taken out my check every mounth I supose to gotten all of that back and I was told I would get it back but I didn’t I only gotten back $185.00 back for over 6 months
A K.
Thank you President Biden for signing the Fairness Act into law, thank you congress for your bi-partisan work on this issue, thank you Mr. Dudek for your quick response and payment which will help all of us former police officers and their beneficiaries! Well Done