Millions of Americans rely on Social Security for their monthly income, and some recipients may be getting a pay bump starting in April 2025. The Social Security Fairness Act (Act) was passed on January 5, 2025, and includes an increase in income for certain individuals, including some teachers, firefighters, and police officers, and federal workers.
Here’s how it works.
What Is the Social Security Fairness Act?
The Social Security Fairness Act was signed into law and replaces the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). The focus of this new law is to help provide more Social Security income to certain workers who receive a pension based on work that was not covered by Social Security (a “non-covered pension”) because they did not pay Social Security taxes.
The previous laws reduced or eliminated Social Security benefits for workers who had a “non-covered pension.” With the new law in place, these workers will start getting compensation in the form of regular Social Security income, and some will see an increase in their monthly Social Security payments if they are already receiving Social Security income.
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Who Gets a Social Security Pay Bump and How Much?
Many federal and state government workers in public service don’t have to pay Social Security taxes. But with the new law in place, these workers may be entitled to some Social Security income. This means that certain workers will see an increase in Social Security benefits, including some:
- Teachers
- Firefighters
- Police officers
- Federal employees (covered by the Civil Service Retirement System)
- Those who were covered by a foreign social security system
This affects about 3.2 million workers who had their Social Security benefits reduced or eliminated by the previous WEP and GPO laws. But not every public service worker will see a pay bump.
According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), only about 28% of public service and federal workers were previously affected by the old WEP and GPO laws — and will be the only ones seeing any pay increase. This is because most (72%) public service workers and federal employees work in jobs that require paying Social Security taxes.
How Much More Social Security Will You Get?
If you’re one of the 28% of public or federal workers who didn’t pay Social Security taxes when you were employed, you could see a small, or significant, pay increase. The amount you receive is based on the type of Social Security benefit received and how much your government pension is. In some cases, certain workers may see an increase of up to $1,000 or more in their monthly Social Security payments.
You may get retroactive pay as well. The new law went into effect on January 1, 2024, so you may see a large lump-sum paycheck from the Social Security Administration. So far, the SSA has paid out billions to over two million retirees, with average payments of over $6,000 per person.
Things to Know About The Social Security Fairness Act
If you believe you qualify for additional payments due to the new Social Security Fairness Act, you should get your retroactive payment soon, and begin seeing an increase in Social Security payments starting in April.
While this should happen automatically, if you’ve never applied for benefits due to WEP or GPO, you may need to apply for retirement, spouse’s, or survivor’s benefits. The date of your application might affect when your benefits begin and your benefit amount.
According to research by the Congressional Budget Office, the average pay increase is around $360 per month for workers previously affected by WEP and GPO. However, the actual amount you receive is based on your work history, type of benefit, and pension amount.
If you need help applying for Social Security benefits or have questions about whether or not the new Social Security Fairness Act will affect your pay, you can see your personal account details at ssa.gov or you can call the Social Security Administration directly at 1-800-772-1213.
