This year, Social Security will experience many changes, many of which are related to the largest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in more than 40 years.
There will be other changes in 2023 besides the new COLA that will affect payments to Social Security beneficiaries.
Social Security 2023
In addition, claimants will begin receiving the Social Security Administration’s retirement benefits for March in 10 days, which might be valued up to $4,555. The first of ten waves each wave reflecting a 10-day period of the month a person was born will begin with the set of payments that will be made on March 8th.
According to the SSA’s schedule, this initial round of payments will be made to those who were born between the first and tenth of a given month.
New COLA
Moreover, the Social Security COLA will grow by 8.7% in 2023, which will be the largest increase since 1981, when it increased by 11.2%. The sharp increase in the COLA this year is a result of the inflation rate, which is at its highest level in 41 years.
According to the SSA, the average monthly Social Security benefit for all retired workers increased by $146 per month to an expected $1,827 from $1,681.
One thing to remember is that not all Social Security recipients will be subject to the 8.7% COLA in 2023. Due to a number of variables, such as your primary insurance amount (PIA) and the time that passes after you enroll in Medicare, some payment increases will be more than 8.7% and some will be lower.
Beneficiaries should have received information on the revised payment amounts in COLA mailings that the SSA should have mailed.
Increase In Maximum Benefits
This year, the maximum benefits for Americans who retire at full retirement age—66 or 67, depending on when you were born—will increase. The limit will increase from $3,345 per month in 2022 to $3,627 in 2023.
SSI Payment Increase
The maximum Federal SSI payment amounts for Social Security claimants who are also eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits will increase in 2023 based on the 8.7% COLA.
The average monthly income for people increases to $914 from $841 in 2022. The monthly payout for couples increases from $1,261 in 2022 to $1,371 in 2023.
Read more: SSI payments worth $914 to arrive in 4 weeks; Who’s the first to receive them?
Change To Earnings Test Exempt Amounts
If your wages are above a specific threshold and you are under the full retirement age, Social Security withholds benefits from you (FRA). The retirement earnings test exempt amount is what it is known as. One of two exempt amounts, a lesser amount in years prior to the year you achieve FRA and a higher amount in the year you reach FRA, is said to apply, according to the SSA.
The earnings test exempt level increases from $1,630 per month in 2022 to $1,770 per month in 2023 if you are under full retirement age. If you have attained FRA, the monthly payment will increase from $4,330 in 2022 to $4,710 in 2023.
If Congress does not figure out how to properly fund Social Security by 2034, the amount that seniors receive may alter, and it may even decrease.
Read more: Tax refund update: Is your inflation relief check taxable?
