The first set of May Social Security payouts, valued up to $5,108 for the highest-income earners who retire at age 70, will be distributed to retirees within 10 days.
Social Security payments normally begin on the second Wednesday of each month, with successive waves sent out in the following weeks. Payments are distributed based on the day of the month in which the retiree was born.
Retirees born between the first and tenth of the month will get benefits on May 14. Beneficiaries born between the 11th and 20th of any given month will receive their cheques on May 21, while those born between the 21st and 31st will receive them on May 28.
Citizens are eligible for Social Security payments at the age of 62, but the amount paid into Social Security, the number of years paid into Social Security, and the retirement age all have an impact on how much beneficiaries get from the program.
Payments are generally based on a recipient's retirement age. According to the Social Security Administration, retiring at the earliest age of 62 allows for up to $2,831 per month, while deferring retirement until age 70 provides for up to $5,108.
The SSA's calculator provides beneficiaries with a specific estimate of how much they can anticipate to receive each month.
Social Security is funded by a payroll tax paid by both employers and employees.
Social Security payments are set to decrease unless Congress does action to prevent it. Analysts predict that the SSA will no longer be able to make full payments to recipients as early as 2034 due to an increasing number of retirees and a decreasing number of workers.