Why some Social Security recipients won’t get checks in September

(NEXSTAR) – Over 7 million Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries won’t receive their checks in September, thanks to a quirk in the calendar.

Checks generally go out on the 1st of each month, but that schedule is disrupted when pay day lands on a weekend or holiday. To adjust for that, the Social Security Administration says it makes payments on the preceding business day.

In this case, Sept. 1 fell on a Sunday, so payments were made on Friday, Aug. 30. With the checks showing up early, some slight budget adjustments may be necessary, but recipients won’t have to worry about getting their SSI payment.

SSI recipients will see another wonky month in November when they receive that month’s payment and December’s payment in the same 30-day span.

If you receive regular Social Security benefits, not SSI, you will largely be unaffected in August and September. However, those who usually receive their Social Security payment on the 3rd day of the month should have received it on Friday, August 2, since August 3 landed on a Saturday.

Those payments will be sent earlier in November as well, coming on Friday, November 1 instead of Sunday, November 3.

The SSI was created in 1974 to provide support to “needy persons aged 65 or older, blind or disabled adults, and blind or disabled children.”

The program began with roughly 3.2 million recipients, a number that has risen to about 7.5 million as of December 2022.