In the coming months, some Social Security recipients will notice a significant change in their benefits. For certain individuals, this change will involve having 50% of their monthly benefits withheld as part of a repayment plan for past overpayments.
Why the Change?
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has begun sending out notices to beneficiaries who were overpaid in the past. Overpayments can happen if the SSA incorrectly calculates a person’s benefits or if a recipient fails to update a change in income. If the overpayment is not waived or repaid within 90 days, the SSA will begin withholding 50% of the affected recipients’ benefits to recover the funds. This process is expected to start after July 24, 2025.
When Will Payments Be Affected?
Recipients who were overpaid could see the withholding start as early as the end of July. Some Social Security recipients will receive payments on July 23, while others will have their next payments on August 1. If you’ve received a notice from the SSA regarding overpayment, make sure to address it within the given timeframe.
Social Security Fairness Act Brings Payments to Public Sector Workers
While some recipients face a reduction in their benefits due to overpayments, others are seeing an increase. The Social Security Fairness Act is benefiting public sector workers, such as police officers, firefighters, postal workers, and teachers who were previously unable to get Social Security or had reduced benefits due to their work not being subject to Social Security taxes.
Since July 7, 2025, the SSA has processed over 3.1 million payments to those entitled to retroactive payment adjustments. As part of the Act, the SSA has paid approximately $17 billion to beneficiaries, with the average retroactive payment being $6,710. These changes may reflect in the August 2025 payment for eligible recipients.
What Is the Impact of Overpayments?
Overpayments are rare, accounting for less than 1% of the nearly $8.6 trillion in benefits paid between 2015 and 2022, according to an August 2024 report from the SSA’s Office of the Inspector General. Of the $72 billion in improper payments made during this time, the SSA has recovered all but $23 billion as of September 2023.
How Do You Repay Overpaid Benefits?
If you’ve been notified of an overpayment, you can repay the amount via:
Credit card
Online bill pay
Check
For more information, you can visit the SSA website. If you believe the overpayment was not your fault or you cannot afford to repay it, you can apply for a waiver. You can submit a waiver request on the SSA website using the appropriate form.
Social Security Fairness Act Updates
Since the Social Security Fairness Act became law on January 5, 2025, more than 278,000 new claims have been received from people with pensions from work not covered by Social Security. The SSA has processed 92% of these claims as of July 2025. If you believe you are eligible for the Social Security Fairness Act benefits, you can file a claim at www.ssa.gov/apply.
