In December 2025, many Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients will find a surprise in their bank accounts: two payments instead of one. This isn’t due to a bureaucratic error or a sudden act of government generosity, but rather a simple quirk of the calendar that forces the Social Security Administration (SSA) to advance funds to avoid delays.
If you’re one of them, the first deposit will arrive on Monday, December 1, covering your usual monthly expenses. The second, scheduled for Wednesday, December 31, will actually be your January 2026 payment, delayed because New Year’s Day falls on a Thursday, a federal holiday that closes banks.
The essence of the SSI program
The SSI program designed to support people with disabilities, low-income seniors, and children who meet strict income thresholds, offering a lifeline against poverty by covering basic needs such as housing, food, and healthcare.
For 2025, the maximum federal amounts remain at $967 for eligible individuals, $1,450 for couples, and $484 for essential workers, but the second December check will incorporate a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2026, raising those figures to $994, $1,491, and $497 respectively.
Who’s eligible for the SSI benefits: the basic requirements
Millions of Americans qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), but the bar is deliberately low and unforgiving. To get it, you must fit into one of three narrow categories: you’re 65 or older, you’re blind, or you have a severe physical or mental impairment that’s expected to last at least a year or result in death.
And that impairment has to stop you from doing any “substantial” work (defined in 2025 as earning more than $1,570 a month if you’re not blind, or $2,610 if you are).
The Social Security Administration doesn’t just take your word for it; doctors, vocational experts, and reams of medical records decide whether your condition meets their exacting listings or is medically equivalent. Children can qualify too, but only if their disability markedly limits daily functioning compared with peers and the family’s income and assets stay under strict limits.
Finally, in 2025, countable resources—cash, bank accounts, stocks, or anything else you could sell—can’t exceed $2,000 for an individual or $3,000 for a couple (your home, one car, and a few other items are excluded).
Income is sliced and diced: most earned wages knock the benefit down 50 cents on the dollar after a small disregard, while unearned income like Social Security or unemployment hits dollar-for-dollar after the first $20. Many states add a small supplement, but the federal ceiling remains tight.