The Social Security Administration (SSA) has updated its payment procedures for April 2025, following the Social Security Fairness Act, which was passed in January 2025. This act was one of the last actions taken by Joe Biden’s government before handing over to Donald Trump.
This new regulation eliminates two provisions known as WEP (Windfall Elimination Provision) and GPO (Government Pension Offset), which had reduced benefits for more than 3.2 million Social Security beneficiaries.
These provisions mainly affected public employees such as teachers, firefighters, and federal agents under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS).
The Law Corrects Unfairness to Social Security Beneficiaries
The Social Security Fairness Act was created to fix an unfairness in the system for people who receive pensions from jobs that are not covered by Social Security.
Before the law, WEP reduced Social Security benefits for those with other pensions, and GPO affected spouses or survivors who were entitled to Social Security benefits. With the new law, these provisions were eliminated, starting January 2024.
Now, 72% of state and local employees, whose jobs are already covered by Social Security, are no longer affected by these reductions.
Retroactive Payments Begin
On February 25, 2025, the SSA started issuing retroactive payments to those whose benefits were reduced due to the WEP and GPO provisions between January 2024 and March 2025.
As of March 4, 2025, more than $7.5 billion has been distributed to around 1,127,723 beneficiaries, with each person receiving an average payment of $6,710. Most people received these payments through direct deposit in March.
For more complicated cases that require manual processing, the SSA expects to complete all payments by April 2025. However, some payments might take longer and could be completed as late as November 2025. The SSA has prioritized simpler cases, processing 85% of them automatically.
For more complex cases, a manual review is needed, which is why the payments may take longer. Beneficiaries will receive notifications by postal mail explaining the changes. The SSA recommends checking the payment status after April 2025, once the processing is complete.
Social Security Payment Dates and Maximum Amounts in April 2025
The SSA has scheduled Social Security payments for April 2025 as follows:
- April 1: Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments.
- April 3: For people who live outside the U.S. and receive both SSI and Social Security, or those who applied for retirement before May 1997.
- For Social Security and disability (SSDI) recipients who applied for benefits after May 1997, the payments are divided into three groups:
- April 9: For people born between the 1st and 10th of any month.
- April 16: For people born between the 11th and 20th of any month.
- April 23: For people born between the 21st and 31st of any month.
Maximum Social Security Payments
The amount of Social Security you can receive each month depends on your age when you begin collecting benefits and other factors. Here are the maximum amounts:
- At age 62: $2,831 per month.
- At age 67 (full retirement age): $4,018 per month.
- At age 70: $5,108 per month.
These amounts may vary depending on your income and how many years you’ve contributed to Social Security. Each case is unique and will depend on personal circumstances.
Impact of the Changes in the Law
The changes in the law, particularly the elimination of WEP and GPO, have resulted in higher payments for many beneficiaries who were previously affected by these provisions. This has brought much-needed relief to individuals who had their benefits unfairly reduced in the past.