The Social Security Fairness Act was signed in January

The Social Security Administration announced that more than 3.2 million people would receive retroactive payments and a monthly benefits increase after former President Joe Biden signed the legislation in January. He expanded benefits to government workers who were initially denied claiming benefits, according to CBS News and Blavity.

“Americans who have worked hard all their life to make an honest living should be able to retire with economic security and dignity,” Biden said at the time, confirming that millions of workers affected by this law would receive increased benefits.

Social Security benefits will be retroactive to December 2023

The bill, one of the last acts by the Biden administration before President Donald Trump took office in January, eliminated the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset, which prevented nearly 3 million retired government workers from receiving their full Social Security benefits.

The benefits will be retroactive to December 2023, and eligible recipients who received partial funds will receive a year’s worth of full payments.

Recipients will receive the retroactive one-time payment at the end of March

“Social Security’s aggressive schedule to start issuing retroactive payments in February and increase monthly benefit payments beginning in April supports President Trump’s priority to implement the Social Security Fairness Act as quickly as possible,” acting commissioner of Social Security, Lee Dudek, said in a statement obtained by CBS News.

“The agency’s original estimate of taking a year or more now will only apply to complex cases that cannot be processed by automation,” he added.

USA Today reported that beneficiaries initially would have had to wait a year or more to receive the money. However, most recipients will receive a one-time payment by the end of March and the boost in monthly payments in April, U.S News reported.