SSI Recipients to Receive December Payment of Up to $994 on Dec. 1

The December 2026 SSI payment schedule follows standard Social Security Administration rules, with no calendar adjustment needed this month, affecting roughly 7.4 million Americans who depend on...

Supplemental Security Income recipients will receive their December 2026 payment of up to $994 on December 1, 2026, according to the Social Security Administration's published payment calendar. The SSA confirmed the date because December 1 falls on a Tuesday, meaning no schedule adjustment is required.

SSI payments are issued on the first calendar day of each month under 42 U.S.C. § 1383, the federal statute governing the SSI program. When the first day of a month falls on a weekend or a federal holiday, the SSA advances the payment to the last preceding business day. Because December 1, 2026 is a Tuesday and is not a federal holiday, the standard disbursement date applies without modification.

The maximum individual SSI benefit for 2026 stands at $994 per month, a figure set by the SSA following its annual cost-of-living adjustment calculation. The 2026 COLA was determined using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, as required by Section 215(i) of the Social Security Act. The SSA publishes benefit amounts and COLA calculations on its official website at ssa.gov.

Approximately 7.4 million Americans received SSI benefits as of the SSA's most recent published data, according to the agency's Monthly Statistical Snapshot. Recipients include elderly individuals, people who are blind, and people with qualifying disabilities whose income and assets fall below program thresholds established in federal regulation at 20 C.F.R. Part 416.

SSI is administered separately from Social Security retirement and disability insurance benefits, which are funded through payroll tax contributions under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act. SSI is instead funded through general federal revenues appropriated by Congress annually. Eligible recipients may receive both SSI and Social Security benefits simultaneously, though the Social Security payment reduces the SSI benefit dollar-for-dollar above a statutory exclusion amount.

Couples in which both partners qualify for SSI receive a combined maximum of $1,491 per month under the 2026 benefit schedule, also published by the SSA. Individual states may supplement the federal SSI benefit amount through state-administered programs, meaning some recipients receive payments above the federal maximum depending on their state of residence. California, New York, and several other states operate such supplementary programs, according to SSA program documentation.

Recipients who have established direct deposit with the SSA will receive funds in their designated bank or credit union account on December 1. Those receiving paper checks should allow additional days for postal delivery, the SSA advises in its payment guidance. Recipients who do not receive their payment within three business days of the scheduled date are directed by the SSA to contact the agency at 1-800-772-1213.

The January 2027 payment presents the next potential schedule adjustment. January 1 is New Year's Day, a federal holiday. If the SSA follows its standard practice, the January 2027 SSI payment would be issued on December 31, 2026, the last business day before the holiday. The SSA has not yet published its January 2027 payment date as of November 1, 2026. The official SSA payment schedule page at ssa.gov/pubs would contain that confirmation once released.

What remains publicly unconfirmed is the precise COLA percentage the SSA will apply to the 2027 benefit year, as the agency typically announces the following year's adjustment in October. The SSA's October 2026 COLA announcement, if published, would be found in the Federal Register and on ssa.gov. That document would establish the maximum SSI benefit amount effective January 2027.