SSI Payment Schedule 2027: Every Date, Including the Two-Payment Months

If your SSI deposit seems to skip a month, it almost always came early instead. The SSI payment schedule pays on the 1st of every month, and when the 1st is a weekend or federal holiday, the Social Security Administration (SSA) pays on the last business day before it.

That one rule is why November 2026 has no SSI deposit (it arrived October 30) and why the January 2027 money, with the new 3.6 percent raise, lands on December 31, 2026. Below is every date for the rest of 2026 and all of 2027, read straight off SSA’s official calendars.

You will also see which months bring two deposits, which bring none, how SSA counts an early deposit against the $2,000 resource limit, and what changes if you get Social Security as well.

Key Takeaways

• SSI is paid on the 1st of the month it covers. If the 1st is a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, it comes on the business day before.
• Left in 2026: October 30 (for November), December 1 and December 31 (for January 2027). November 2026 has no deposit.
• In 2027, money arrives early four times: December 31, 2026, April 30, July 30 and December 30, 2027. January, May and August 2027 have no deposit.
• An early deposit is not extra money. SSA counts it as income for the month it covers, not the month it lands.
• The 2027 maximum federal rate is $1,029 for one person and $1,544 for a couple, starting with the December 31, 2026 deposit.

What day is SSI paid each month?

Supplemental Security Income is paid on the 1st of each month, for that same month. When the 1st falls on a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, SSA pays on the closest business day before it. Your birthday does not matter for SSI. Everyone on SSI is paid on the same day.

The rule is written in the Social Security Handbook, section 121.5: payments “are usually dated and delivered on the first day of the month that they are due,” and move to the first earlier day “that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday.”

This is not a courtesy SSA can switch off. A 1977 law, Public Law 95-216, requires early delivery whenever the 1st is a weekend or holiday, according to the 2025 SSI Annual Report. So the same pattern repeats every year, and you can plan around it.

SSI works differently from Social Security retirement and disability (SSDI), which pay on a Wednesday picked by your birthday. If you want those Wednesday dates, our Social Security payment schedule lists them month by month. This page sticks to SSI.

SSI payment schedule for the rest of 2026

Three SSI deposits remain in 2026, and two of them arrive in a month other than the one they cover. Here is what SSA’s 2026 payment calendar shows from October on.

Month the money is for	Date it arrives	Why
October 2026	Thursday, October 1	On time
November 2026	Friday, October 30	November 1 is a Sunday
December 2026	Tuesday, December 1	On time
January 2027	Thursday, December 31	January 1 is New Year’s Day

October therefore holds two deposits, on the 1st and the 30th. November holds none. December holds two again, on the 1st and the 31st, and January 2027 holds none.

The December 31 deposit is also the first one at the higher 2027 rate. SSA’s October 14, 2026 announcement says increased payments “to about 7.3 million people receiving SSI will begin on December 31, 2026.” If your check looks bigger that day, that is why.

If you are counting on a November deposit

The deposit on Friday, October 30 is your November SSI. Nothing more arrives until Tuesday, December 1. Bills due on November 1, including most rent, should come out of the October 30 money, not the October 1 money you have already spent on October.

Thanksgiving and early holiday shopping make that month feel longer than it is. If your landlord or utility posts payments on the 1st, paying them the day the money lands keeps the deposit from being spent twice.

Earlier in 2026 the same thing happened in January (paid January 30 for February), February (paid February 27 for March) and July (paid July 31 for August). If you saw a gap in March or August, that was the reason.

SSI payment schedule 2027, month by month

In 2027, SSI arrives on the 1st in eight months and early in four. Every date below comes from SSA’s Schedule of Social Security Benefit Payments 2027 (Publication 05-10031), where SSI days are the circled dates.

Month the money is for	Date it arrives	Early?
January 2027	Thursday, December 31, 2026	Yes, New Year’s Day
February 2027	Monday, February 1	No
March 2027	Monday, March 1	No
April 2027	Thursday, April 1	No
May 2027	Friday, April 30	Yes, May 1 is a Saturday
June 2027	Tuesday, June 1	No
July 2027	Thursday, July 1	No
August 2027	Friday, July 30	Yes, August 1 is a Sunday
September 2027	Wednesday, September 1	No
October 2027	Friday, October 1	No
November 2027	Monday, November 1	No
December 2027	Wednesday, December 1	No
January 2028	Thursday, December 30, 2027	Yes, see below

The last row trips people up. January 1, 2028 is a Saturday, and when a federal holiday lands on a Saturday, the Friday before is treated as the holiday, per the Office of Personnel Management. That makes Friday, December 31, 2027 a holiday too, so the January 2028 money moves all the way back to Thursday, December 30.

SSA’s 2027 calendar confirms it by circling December 30. Across 2026 and 2027, New Year’s Day is the only holiday that moves an SSI date. Every other shift comes from a weekend.

Counting by the date money reaches you, calendar year 2027 still holds 12 deposits: February 1, March 1, April 1, April 30, June 1, July 1, July 30, September 1, October 1, November 1, December 1 and December 30. You just get them in an uneven rhythm.

Which months have two SSI payments, and which have none?

From October 2026 through December 2027, five calendar months bring two SSI deposits and four bring none. The doubles are October 2026, December 2026, April 2027, July 2027 and December 2027. The empty months are November 2026, January 2027, May 2027 and August 2027.

Notice that the doubles and the gaps always come in pairs. A two-deposit month is always followed by an empty one, because the second deposit is next month’s money. December 2027 is the exception only on this chart: its matching empty month is January 2028.

Why the calendar does this

A month starts on a Saturday or Sunday roughly two times in seven, so a weekend 1st turns up several times a year. Add New Year’s Day, which is always the 1st, and some shifting is guaranteed every year. It is the calendar at work, not a bonus and not an error.

The shift even shows up in the federal budget. SSA’s annual SSI report explains that a fiscal year (October 1 to September 30) can hold 11, 12 or 13 months of SSI payments, depending on whether October 1 falls on a weekend at either end of the year.

Is the second SSI deposit extra money?

No. The second deposit in a two-payment month is the next month’s SSI, paid ahead of time. SSA counts it as income for the month it is meant for, not the month it lands in, so it does not raise your income, cut your benefit or count as a windfall. It does mean the next month has no deposit.

SSA’s own staff manual spells this out. Under POMS SI 00810.030, when a payment is dated early “because the regular payment date falls on a weekend or holiday,” SSA treats it as “income to the recipient in the month of normal receipt.” Direct deposits get the same treatment.

What about the $2,000 resource limit?

This is the worry that comes up most. SSI has a countable resource limit of $2,000 for one person and $3,000 for a couple, per SSA’s SSI resources page, and SSA checks your bank balance as of the first moment of each month.

Picture May 1, 2027. The May money arrived April 30, so on May 1 it is sitting in your account. SSA’s rule for checking and savings accounts, POMS SI 01140.200, tells staff to deduct an early SSI deposit from that first-of-the-month balance when the balance matters for eligibility.

The same section notes that some banks post benefits a day or two before the official date. SSA still counts that money “as received in the month the payment is due.” The rule covers early Social Security deposits too.

The exclusion only protects the early deposit itself. Savings you carry over from earlier months still count. If your balance often sits near the limit, keep the bank statement that shows the deposit date, so you can show SSA which dollars were the early payment.

How do you stretch an early deposit across the empty month?

The practical trouble with a two-deposit month is the month after it. Rent, phone and utility bills still come due, but nothing new arrives. People who spend the early deposit as if it were a bonus end up short four weeks later.

Here is a simple worked example of our own. Say you get the full 2027 individual rate of $1,029 and nothing else. In April 2027, you receive $1,029 on April 1 for April and another $1,029 on April 30 for May. Then nothing comes until June 1.

The April 30 money has to cover all of May. Treat it as May’s money the moment it lands. Some people move it to a separate savings space or envelope until May 1, or pay the May rent on April 30 so it is spoken for.

• Mark the four early dates for 2027 now: December 31, 2026, April 30, July 30 and December 30.
• Tell your landlord or utility company you are paid on the 1st or earlier.
• Set autopay dates for the 1st to the 5th, never the last week of the month, so a bill cannot hit before the deposit.
• Expect holiday spending pressure on December 31. That deposit is January’s rent and food, not extra holiday money.

If a gap month leaves you short on food, check whether you qualify for SNAP food help. Our SNAP income limits guide has the current numbers.

How does the SSI payment schedule work if you also get Social Security?

If you get both SSI and Social Security, you are paid twice a month on a fixed pattern: SSI on the 1st and Social Security on the 3rd. SSA’s calendar legend says it plainly: “Social Security is paid on the 3rd and SSI on the 1st.” Each date moves earlier when it lands on a weekend or holiday.

The 3rd-of-the-month rule also covers people whose income is counted toward someone else’s SSI, according to Handbook section 121.3. Your birthday Wednesday no longer applies once you are in this group.

2027 month	SSI arrives	Social Security arrives
January	December 31, 2026	December 31, 2026
February	February 1	February 3
March	March 1	March 3
April	April 1	Friday, April 2
May	April 30	May 3
June	June 1	June 3
July	July 1	Friday, July 2
August	July 30	August 3
September	September 1	September 3
October	October 1	Friday, October 1
November	November 1	November 3
December	December 1	Friday, December 3

Two days stand out. On December 31, 2026, both deposits arrive together, because January 1 is a holiday and January 3 is a Sunday. On October 1, 2027, they arrive together again, because October 3 is a Sunday.

There is one more difference between the two checks. Your SSI on the 1st is for the current month. Your Social Security on the 3rd is for the month before: the Handbook’s example is that “payments for January are delivered on February 3.” Keep that in mind when SSA asks about income for a given month.

Not sure which benefit you have, or whether you have both? Our SSI vs SSDI guide walks through the difference, and your award letter names the program.

When does the 2027 SSI increase show up?

The raise first appears in the deposit dated Thursday, December 31, 2026, which is your January 2027 money. The 2027 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is 3.6 percent, per SSA’s 2027 SSI payment amounts page.

Federal SSI maximum	2026	2027	Change
Individual	$994	$1,029	+$35
Couple, both eligible	$1,491	$1,544	+$53

Those are maximums. SSA reduces the federal amount by your countable income, and for a couple the amount is split equally between the two of you. Some states add a supplement on top. The 2026 figures come from SSA’s SSI payment history table.

To see how the 3.6 percent changes your own check, try our COLA calculator. For the full story on the 2027 raise, including Medicare Part B, read our 2027 COLA guide.

SSA will also send a COLA notice. To read it online before the paper copy arrives, SSA says you must set up a my Social Security account and choose paperless notices by November 18, 2026.

Why can the amount change from one deposit to the next?

The date stays fixed, but the amount can move, and the reason is also tied to the calendar. Under 20 CFR 416.420, SSA “generally use[s] the amount of your countable income in the second month prior to the current month” to set the payment for the current month.

The regulation’s own example: Mrs. X’s countable income in July sets her SSI for September. So if you earned extra in March 2027, expect it to show up in the May 2027 money, which, under the schedule above, arrives on April 30.

That two-month lag is why a smaller deposit can show up long after a short-term job ended.

It also explains a change many people notice in January if they get both benefits. When Social Security rises with the COLA, the rule adds the January increase in your Social Security to your income right away when it figures January SSI.

In plain terms, part of the Social Security raise is offset by a smaller SSI amount, so your combined January money may grow by less than you expected. For how countable income works, and which income SSA ignores, see our SSI income limit guide.

When will my first SSI payment come?

SSI is never paid for the month you apply. Under federal rule 20 CFR 416.501, payment cannot cover any period before “the first month following the date on which an application is filed,” or the month after you meet every condition, if that is later.

The rule’s own example: someone who applies in September and qualifies that month can first be paid for October. So if you apply in March 2027 and qualify right away, April is the first month SSI can cover. Once approved, your regular check comes on the normal schedule above.

Approval itself can take time, so the first deposit may come well after that first covered month. If you are still deciding whether to apply, our SSI program overview covers who qualifies.

Does a state supplement come on the same day?

It depends on who runs your state’s supplement. When SSA pays the state supplement for your state, it is part of the same SSI deposit on the same date. When the state runs its own supplement, the money is separate and follows the state’s calendar.

SSA’s banking rules draw that line: “payments under State-administered plans are not included in monthly SSI payments,” according to the same POMS section, SI 01140.200. If a second, smaller deposit shows up on a different day, that is often the state payment. Your state human services agency can confirm its date.

What to do if your SSI deposit is late or missing

Start with your bank, not SSA. SSA’s missing payment FAQ says that if an electronic payment is not there on the scheduled date, “please contact your bank or financial institution first,” because the bank may simply be slow to post it.

1. Check the date against the tables above. Many “missing” checks were paid early, on the last business day of the prior month.
2. Call your bank or card provider and ask whether a federal deposit is pending.
3. If you still get a paper check, SSA’s calendar asks you to “allow three additional mailing days before contacting Social Security.”
4. Still nothing? Call SSA at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). Say “check delivery” to the automated line, or visit a local office. SSA says that if the payment is due, it will replace it.

You can also see your past and upcoming deposits by signing in to my Social Security. The phone line for checking delivery runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in English and Spanish.

Still getting a paper check?

Paper checks are being phased out. SSA’s June 2026 notice says federal law and an executive order require federal benefits to be paid electronically, and that paper checks are 16 times more likely to be lost, stolen, altered or returned than electronic payments.

No bank account? You can have SSI loaded onto a Direct Express prepaid debit card. SSA lists 1-800-967-6857 and GoDirect.gov for sign-up. If going electronic truly is not possible for you, the Treasury takes waiver requests at 1-877-874-6347.

One more warning for the weeks around the raise and the holidays: SSA’s COLA page reminds people that its services are free, and the raise is automatic. Anyone asking for a fee or a gift card is a scammer. Our scam watch page tracks the current tricks.

The short version for the next 14 months: watch for money on October 30, December 31, April 30, July 30 and December 30, and set each one aside for the month that follows.

Related reading

• SSDI: how disability benefits work
• Medicare Savings Programs: help with Part B costs
• Extra Help for Medicare drug costs
• How to apply for SSDI
• Help for people with disabilities