--- title: Thousands of Social Security Recipients Will Soon Qualify for Bigger Payments description: 'The Social Security Administration is changing a policy: More people will qualify for benefits, and SSI recipients could get more money.' authors: - name: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 453 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum editors: - name: Brad Tuttle role: Senior Editor url: https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/ bio: Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals. education: Columbia University School of Journalism, MS at_money_since: 2014 articles: 366 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Professional Services - Shopping - Taxes - Technology social: - https://twitter.com/bradrtuttle - https://linkedin.com/in/brad-tuttle-834b225 former_staff: true published: '2024-05-10T18:08:15.000Z' modified: '2024-05-10T18:08:15.000Z' section: Retirement tags: - News word_count: 439 canonical: https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Photo collage of an overhead view of people walking over multiple social security cards](https://img.money.com/2024/05/News-More-Qualify-Social-Security.jpg) A change in government policy will help more Americans qualify for Social Security benefits — and increase payments for some existing recipients. The Social Security Administration announced Thursday that it has published a final rule affecting its Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, which sends monthly checks to about 7.4 million Americans with limited resources who are disabled, blind or older than 65. The rule expands the agency's definition of a "public assistance household," opening it up to households that receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, informally known as food stamps. SSI payments are based on income and resources; the more a person has, generally, the less they get paid. This adjustment is crucial because the government will now assume that an SSI candidate in a SNAP household isn't getting income from other people they live with — which may make them eligible for benefits or a bigger check. ## Select your state to get started with a Reverse Mortgage ### If you're 62 or older\*, a Reverse Mortgage from Finance of America (NMLS# 2285) could help you build a more financially secure retirement. [Learn More](https://money.com/pr/fb272d48a2bd?ap_referrer=%2Fsocial-security-ssi-change-increase-payments%2F) \*62 is the minimum age for HECM's. Certain proprietary reverse mortgages may have a lower minimum. "The expanded definition will allow more people to qualify for SSI, increase some SSI recipients' payment amounts, and reduce reporting burdens for individuals living in public assistance households," according to a [news release](https://blog.ssa.gov/social-security-to-expand-access-to-ssi-program-by-updating-definition-of-a-public-assistance-household/). In addition, public assistance households will now be defined as those in which at least one person is getting (or has applied for) SSI and at least one person is receiving funds from another government income initiative. Before this change, *everyone* in a household had to be receiving public assistance in order to meet the requirements. In summary, the agency is loosening a handful of restrictions for SSI, making it somewhat easier for a person in need to satisfy the conditions. An estimated 277,000 current SSI recipients will see higher payments, and 109,000 more people will qualify for SSI once the full impact of the rule has settled in 2033. "By simplifying our policies and including an additional program geared towards low-income families, such as the SNAP, we are removing significant barriers to accessing SSI," Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley said in a statement. "These changes promote greater equity in our programs." SSI has a smaller scope than the retiree benefit program Social Security is known for, but it's still a lifeline for millions. The average monthly SSI payment is about $698. The public assistance household rule is set to take effect Sept. 30, as is a [separate change](https://blog.ssa.gov/social-security-to-expand-ssi-rental-subsidy-policy-agency-continues-to-remove-barriers-to-accessing-ssi-payments/) expanding the SSI rental subsidy policy: another move intended "to help people access crucial benefits," O'Malley said. ## Is a Reverse Mortgage right for you? ### With Finance of America (NMLS# 2285), you could get the most out of your Reverse Mortgage loan. Click below and start Planning your future today. [Learn More](https://money.com/pr/e58184323a1f?ap_referrer=%2Fsocial-security-ssi-change-increase-payments%2F) ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/39553/medium_d01d803f-1110-4310-8997-bada342c27e4.webp) Get the most out of your Reverse Mortgage with Finance of America (NMLS #2285) [Learn More](https://money.com/pr/v5cb776331b0?ap_referrer=%2Fsocial-security-ssi-change-increase-payments%2F) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Retirement", "item": "https://money.com/retirement/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Social Security", "item": "https://money.com/social-security/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Thousands of Social Security Recipients Will Soon Qualify for Bigger Payments" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/", "name": "Thousands of Social Security Recipients Will Soon Qualify for Bigger Payments", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2024-05-10T18:08:15.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/social-security-ssi-change-increase-payments/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2024-05-10T18:08:15.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "Thousands of Social Security Recipients Will Soon Qualify for Bigger Payments", "articleSection": "Retirement", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2024/05/News-More-Qualify-Social-Security.jpg", "width": 1094, "height": 729, "caption": "News-More-Qualify-Social-Security" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Julia Glum", "url": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/#author", "description": "Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. 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