SSDI recipients got the second stimulus check on the same schedule as everyone else

If you were receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) in December 2020, you received the second stimulus payment automatically—you did not have to do anything. The IRS and Social Security coordinated to send payments to SSDI recipients using the same bank account or mailing address on file with Social Security. Most SSDI recipients received their payment between December 28, 2020, and January 15, 2021.

The second stimulus check was $600 per adult and $600 per dependent child under 17. This was different from the first stimulus payment, which was $1,200 per adult. SSDI recipients did not need to file a tax return or contact Social Security to receive it—the payment came through automatically if Social Security had current banking information.

If you did not receive a payment by mid-January 2021, it likely meant Social Security did not have a valid bank account on file, and the IRS mailed a paper check instead. Paper checks took longer to arrive, sometimes several weeks after the initial wave of deposits.

Key Takeaways

  • SSDI recipients received the second stimulus payment automatically between late December 2020 and mid-January 2021 without taking any action.
  • The payment was $600 per adult SSDI recipient and $600 per dependent child under 17, sent to the bank account or address Social Security had on file.
  • If you did not receive a deposit by mid-January 2021, the IRS likely mailed a paper check, which arrived later than direct deposits.
  • SSDI recipients did not need to file a tax return or contact Social Security to receive the second stimulus payment.

How Social Security coordinated with the IRS to send payments

Social Security and the IRS worked together to identify SSDI recipients and send payments without requiring them to take any steps. The IRS used Social Security's records to determine who was receiving SSDI benefits in December 2020 and sent payment information to the Treasury Department, which then processed the deposits or mailed checks.

This coordination meant SSDI recipients were prioritized in the first wave of payments. People who received other types of Social Security benefits—retirement, survivor benefits, or Supplemental Security Income (SSI)—also received payments on the same automatic schedule. The system was designed to reach people who did not file tax returns, since many SSDI recipients have income below the threshold that requires filing.

If Social Security had your current bank account information from a direct deposit you were already receiving, the payment went to that account. If not, the IRS mailed a physical check to your address on file with Social Security.

What happened if you did not receive the payment by January 2021

Some SSDI recipients did not receive the second stimulus payment on the expected timeline. The most common reason was that Social Security did not have a valid bank account on file. This happened to people who received their SSDI benefit by paper check instead of direct deposit, or whose banking information had changed and was not updated with Social Security.

If you fell into this group, the IRS mailed a paper check instead. These checks were sent in batches throughout January and February 2021. Delivery time depended on your location and the postal service's workload, so some people received checks weeks after the initial direct deposit wave.

A smaller number of SSDI recipients had issues with duplicate payments or payments sent to the wrong account. If this happened to you, the IRS had a process to correct it, though it required contacting the IRS directly rather than Social Security.

Whether the second stimulus payment affected your SSDI benefits

The second stimulus payment did not reduce your SSDI benefit amount. Unlike some other forms of income, stimulus payments were not counted as earnings or unearned income for the purposes of calculating your monthly SSDI check. Your benefit stayed the same whether you received the stimulus payment or not.

However, if you also received Supplemental Security Income (SSI)—a different program for people with disabilities, blindness, or age 65 and older with low income—the stimulus payment was treated differently. SSI has strict rules about how much money you can have in the bank, and the stimulus payment counted toward those limits. Many SSI recipients were given a temporary exemption so the stimulus payment would not cause them to lose benefits, but the rules varied depending on when you received the payment and your state's policies.

If you received both SSDI and SSI, you should have received information from Social Security about how the stimulus payment affected your SSI benefits specifically. If you did not receive that information and were concerned about your benefits, contacting Social Security directly would have been the right step.

The difference between the second and third stimulus payments

The third stimulus payment came later, in spring 2021, and was larger: $1,400 per adult and $1,400 per dependent child. SSDI recipients received this payment on the same automatic basis as the second payment, using the same bank account or mailing address on file.

The timing was different, though. The third payment began rolling out in mid-March 2021 and continued through April and May. Some SSDI recipients received it within days of the law passing; others waited several weeks. The IRS prioritized people with the lowest incomes first, which meant some SSDI recipients received it earlier than others depending on their benefit amount.

Like the second payment, the third stimulus did not reduce your SSDI benefit. And like the second payment, if you also received SSI, the rules were more complicated and depended on your state and the timing of when you received the payment.

If you think you should have received a payment but did not

If you were receiving SSDI in December 2020 and did not receive the second stimulus payment by February 2021, something went wrong. The most likely explanation was that Social Security's records did not show you as an active SSDI recipient at that time, or the IRS did not have your correct address or bank account information.

To track down a missing payment, you would have needed to contact the IRS directly, not Social Security. The IRS had a "Get My Payment" tool on its website where you could check the status of your payment and update your bank account or mailing address if needed. This tool remained available for months after the initial payment wave.

If the tool showed that a payment was sent to an address you no longer used, or to a bank account you no longer had access to, the IRS had a process to reissue the payment. This process took time and required documentation, but it was available to people who could prove they were may have access to to the payment but did not receive it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did I have to report the stimulus payment to Social Security?

No. SSDI recipients did not need to report the stimulus payment to Social Security, and it did not affect their SSDI benefit. If you also received SSI, the rules were different and depended on your state, but you still did not need to report it—Social Security and the IRS coordinated the payment themselves.

What if I received the stimulus payment but I was not supposed to?

This was rare for SSDI recipients, since the payment was based on receiving SSDI in December 2020. If you received a payment and later learned you were not may have access to to it, the IRS would eventually contact you about repayment. You could also contact the IRS voluntarily to report the error, though this was not required.

Can I still get the second stimulus payment if I missed it in 2021?

The second stimulus payment was only available during 2021. If you did not receive it by the end of that year, you could have claimed it on your 2020 tax return as the Recovery Rebate Credit. This required filing a tax return, even if you normally did not have to file one. That window has now closed.

Did the stimulus payment count as income for Medicare or Medicaid?

The stimulus payment did not count as income for Medicare, since Medicare may be able to access is based on age or disability status, not income. For Medicaid, the rules varied by state, but most states did not count the stimulus payment as income. If you were concerned about your Medicaid coverage, your state Medicaid office would have had the specific rules.