What the Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act was

The Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act was a one-time payment program passed by Congress in 2022 that sent $1,350 to every Social Security beneficiary who received benefits in May 2022. The payment went to people on retirement, disability (SSDI), and survivor benefits. It was not a permanent change to monthly payments — it was a single supplemental check meant to help with inflation costs that year.

The law was signed in September 2022, and payments were sent out in October and November 2022. If you received Social Security in May 2022, you should have gotten the payment automatically without having to do anything. The Social Security Administration (SSA) did not require you to apply or submit paperwork.

This was separate from the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that Social Security makes each January. The inflation relief payment was a one-time response to the high inflation rates in 2022, not a permanent benefit increase.

Key Takeaways

  • The Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act sent a one-time payment of $1,350 to all beneficiaries who were receiving Social Security in May 2022.
  • The payment was sent automatically in October and November 2022 — you did not need to apply or contact Social Security to receive it.
  • The payment went to people on retirement benefits, disability (SSDI), and survivor benefits, but not to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients.
  • This was a one-time relief measure and did not change your regular monthly Social Security payment amount.

Who received the $1,350 payment

You received the payment if you were on Social Security's payroll in May 2022. This included people receiving retirement benefits, Disability Insurance (SSDI), and survivor benefits paid to family members of deceased workers. The SSA used May 2022 as the cutoff month because that was when they had the most current records of who was actively receiving benefits.

People on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) — the needs-based program for low-income seniors, blind, and disabled people — did not receive this payment. SSI is a separate program from Social Security, and Congress did not include SSI recipients in this relief act. Some states did pass their own one-time payments to SSI recipients, but that was not part of the federal law.

If you were receiving benefits but had a representative payee (someone managing your benefits on your behalf), the payment still went to your account. The payee could not claim the money as their own.

How the payment was delivered

The Social Security Administration sent the $1,350 payment using the same method you normally receive your monthly benefit. If you get direct deposit, the payment went to your bank account. If you receive a paper check, you got a check in the mail. If you use a Social Security payment card (a debit card issued by SSA), the payment was loaded onto that card.

Most payments were sent in October 2022, though some arrived in November depending on your payment schedule and delivery method. You did not need to do anything to receive it — SSA processed and sent it automatically to everyone who may have access to.

If you did not receive the payment and believe you should have, you could contact Social Security directly at 1-800-772-1213 to ask about it. However, because this was a one-time 2022 payment, it is no longer being issued.

Why Congress passed this law

In 2022, inflation in the United States reached levels not seen in decades. Prices for groceries, housing, utilities, and other necessities rose sharply, and people on fixed incomes like Social Security were hit hard. The annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that Social Security makes each January was not scheduled to take effect until January 2023, leaving beneficiaries struggling through the rest of 2022.

Congress passed the Emergency Inflation Relief Act as a temporary measure to put money in people's hands immediately. The $1,350 amount was chosen as a one-time supplement to help cover increased living costs while waiting for the January 2023 COLA adjustment.

This was not the only inflation relief Congress passed in 2022. Other programs and industries also received emergency funding, but the Social Security payment was specifically targeted at the roughly 67 million people receiving Social Security benefits.

What happened after the payment was sent

The $1,350 payment did not change your regular monthly Social Security amount. Your benefits continued at the same level they were before. In January 2023, Social Security applied the annual COLA adjustment as usual, which increased monthly payments for most beneficiaries. That COLA increase was separate from the emergency inflation relief payment.

If you received the payment and later had your benefits reduced or stopped for any reason (such as earning too much money if you were still working), that did not affect the $1,350 you had already received. Once the payment was sent to you, it was yours to keep.

The emergency relief payment was not counted as income for purposes of means-tested programs like Medicaid or SNAP (food assistance) in most states, though some states had different rules. If you were concerned about how the payment might affect your other benefits, you could have contacted your state's Medicaid office or your local SNAP office for guidance.

If you think you were missed

If you were receiving Social Security in May 2022 but did not receive the $1,350 payment by the end of 2022, you could contact Social Security to report it. You would need to provide your Social Security number and information about how you normally receive your benefits (direct deposit, check, or payment card).

Social Security's phone line is 1-800-772-1213, and you can also visit your local Social Security office in person. You can find your nearest office at ssa.gov/locator. Because this was a 2022 payment, it is no longer being issued, but if you can show you were receiving benefits in May 2022 and did not get the payment, Social Security may have been able to help you at that time.

If you have already received the payment, there is nothing you need to do. You do not need to report it on your taxes or take any action with Social Security.

Frequently Asked Questions

Was the $1,350 payment taxable income?

No. The Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act payment was not counted as taxable income on your federal tax return. You did not need to report it to the IRS, and it did not affect your 2022 taxes.

Did the payment affect my Medicare premiums?

The one-time payment did not automatically change your Medicare Part B or Part D premiums. However, if the payment pushed your total income above certain thresholds, it could have affected your income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA) for future years. This is determined by your income from two years prior, so the 2022 payment might have affected your 2024 premiums. You can contact Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE if you have questions about your specific situation.

Did SSI recipients get this payment?

No. The law only covered Social Security beneficiaries (retirement, disability, and survivor benefits). Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients were not included in the federal relief act, though some individual states provided their own one-time payments to SSI recipients.

Can I get the payment now if I didn't receive it in 2022?

The Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act was a one-time 2022 program that is no longer issuing payments. If you believe you should have received it and did not, you could have contacted Social Security in 2022 or early 2023, but the payment window has closed.

Was this the same as the COLA increase?

No. The emergency inflation relief payment was separate from the annual cost-of-living adjustment. The COLA happens every January and is a permanent increase to your monthly benefit based on inflation. The $1,350 was a one-time supplement sent in 2022 only.