Social Security recipients will have a reason to be a little more thankful this Thanksgiving.
Recipients will receive an extra check because of a scheduling quirk. There is bad news – you won't receive a check in December.
Social Security beneficiaries who also get Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will get three checks in November: two SSI payments in addition to their monthly Social Security check, government-issued retirement income for those 62 and older.
However, SSI recipients will not get a check in the following month, December.
Why am I getting two Social Security Check in November
The double-check month isn't unusual.
The oddity happens because Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits – additional payments beyond Social Security for those with little or no income and very limited resources – come out on the first business day of each month. Since Dec. 1 falls on a Sunday, the checks will be distributed on Friday, Nov. 29, according to the SSA calendar.
The 2025 calendar is online, too, and there will be similar calendar quirks in the coming year. For instance, SSI recipients will get their January 2025 payment on Dec. 31, 2024. Then they will get their February 2025 payment on Jan. 31, 2025, and their March 2025 payment on Feb. 28, 2025.
That means SSI beneficiaries will get no payment in March. In May 2025, they will also get two payments but none in June.
What is Social Security?
Social Security provides United States citizens with retirement, disability and survivor benefits, giving citizens financial protection. The money comes from taxes paid by employees, employers and self-employed people.
Social Security replaces a percentage of a worker's pre-retirement income based on your lifetime earnings. The amount of your average earnings that Social Security retirement benefits replace depends on your earnings and when you choose to start benefits.
You can receive Social Security benefits based on your earnings record if you are age 62 or older, or a person with a disability or blindness and have enough work credits.
What is SSI?
SSI provides payments to people with limited income resources who are 65 or older, blind, or those who have a qualifying disability – including children with a qualifying disability – the SSA website says. For adults, SSI is generally for those who don’t earn more than $1,971 from work each month.
If you think you could be eligible for SSI, a new, streamlined process for Americans to apply for SSI benefits is scheduled to be rolled out later this year.
November Social Security payment schedule
The Social Security Administration's yearly distribution schedules are available online so you can use the calendar for budgeting purposes.