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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Uikiuiki2 M.
Will I get back the amount of $185.00 a month for part b premiums? Will this be included from last year (2024)???
Vickie
Seniors who worked prior for HUD even though our retirement is not thru them it was still a government job, why would we NOT be eligible? Doesn’t seem fair to all seniors who to begin with are NOT even getting close to what they paid into all these years.
JoanA
I have no idea why my husband received an extra $5000 + on a different date when his SS benefits are normally under $200. Who do I contact
S.S.
Hi, JoanA. Thanks for reading our blog. 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. For more information, visit our Social Security Fairness Act webpage. We hope this helps.
Deanna S.
As a retired federal employee under the CSRS, I never paid into Social Security. However, my husband, who passed 10 years ago, did pay into SS for many years. Upon his death, the only SS payment I received was the $255.00 burial payment – I was told that because my federal pension was higher than his SS, I was not eligible for any spousal benefits. Am I now eligible to receive such spousal benefits? If so, how do I apply – since I do not receive SS, I do not have a direct deposit bank account on file. Thank you.
VKR
Let’s get this straight- if you get a pension based on working for state, etc and you’re SSA benefits were reduced due to the WEP, this applies to you. This started in the 1980s when the SS funds were more than full and Congress let the Feds “borrow” from the SSA funds. Since then the state employees/police/fire had SS pensions reduced. They have fought it for years. Finally, every fed rep and Sen got together to make this right. It was signed by BOTH houses in 12/24. PRESIDENT BIDEN SIGNED IT IN JANUARY, 2025. NOT TRUMP. Trump let it go thru so you would WRONGLY think it was him.
1 yr of back benefits was included by Congress/BIDEN.
I’m in OH and I have recd my back pay as of 3/5/2025. When are other states getting theirs? I have friends in NY who have not recd theirs. They worked for NY State agencies and private employers.
Craig M.
Thank you very much President Trump long awaited the money will help very much too bad. You can’t be president for 10 more years.
VKR
Prez BIDEN signed the Act before he left office in Jan, 2025. Trump let it go, knowing many uninformed would think it was him. Sorry you were misled.
VKR
PRESIDENT BIDEN signed the Act before he left in Jan, 2025. Trump wants you to think he signed it.
Ch
Hey , it was not President Trump that gave you the money , it was former President Biden that gave it to you
Don H.
Sorry about this comment as a reply to another post. It was meant as a reply the article writer.
Repeat:
“I note your genuflection to trump, and am sickened by it!”
Gladys A.
I received mine on 3/4/25 and really appreciate it. Too bad it was changed in 2007 when I retired. Looking forward to updated monthly amount. Thank you so much.
Pat
So, how do we manage the obvious Fed/State tax that’s due on the back payment?
Marlene
Why was the amount so low it doesn’t seem right