Social Security Matters

by Russell Gloor, National Social Security Advisor at the AMAC Foundation, the non-profit arm of the Association of Mature American Citizens

Dear Rusty: My question concerns the passing of my brother on December 23, 2025.  Since he passed away before the month was over, does that mean he will not receive a Social Security payment for December 2025? Does the fact he passed before the end of December negate him receiving benefits for December 2025? Signed: Executor of my Brother's Estate 

 Dear Executor Sister:  Please accept our sincere condolences on your brother’s passing.  FYI, according to Social Security law, all SS benefits are paid in the month following the month they are earned, which means two in things in this circumstance: 

 1. Any SS payment your brother received during the month of December (his month of death) is legally his (or his estate’s) because that payment was for the month before he died (November 2025). 

 2. Any SS benefits received thereafter (e.g., SS benefits paid in January 2026 for the month of December 2025) must be returned to Social Security (the bank which received his SS payments would normally handle this automatically if they were notified of your brother’s death). 

 Social Security benefits are not paid for the month of death because the beneficiary did not live the entire month, and SS benefits are not paid for partial months. So even though your brother lived about 3/4ths of the month of December, he (his estate) will not get any SS benefits for the month of December. Indeed, even those who pass shortly before midnight on the last day of the month do not get Social Security benefits for the month they died. 

 For additional information, if your brother was married and his wife is still living, she would be entitled to a one-time, lump sum death benefit of $255 (if she is also eligible for her own SS retirement benefit). And, depending on her own SS retirement amount, she might also be eligible for a surviving spouse benefit as your brother’s widow.

This article is intended for information purposes only and does not represent legal or financial guidance. It presents the opinions and interpretations of the AMAC Foundation’s staff, trained and accredited by the National Social Security Association (NSSA). NSSA and the AMAC Foundation and its staff are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration (amacfoundation.org/programs/social-security-dvisory) or email us at ssadvisor@amacfoundation.org.