Turning 65 comes with one piece of paperwork you don’t want to put off: signing up for Medicare. The good news is you get a generous seven-month window to do it — as long as you know when it opens and what to do with it.
The 7-month window
Your Initial Enrollment Period (IEP) is built around your 65th birthday, and it runs for seven months total:
- The 3 months before your birthday month
- Your birthday month itself
- The 3 months after your birthday month
So if you turn 65 in June, your IEP runs from March 1 through September 30. This window is the same for almost everyone, and it’s the easiest, cleanest time to get on Medicare — no penalties, no extra hoops.
If you’re not sure exactly when your window opens, the Timeline Calculator maps out your personal dates based on your birthday, and the Enrollment Countdown shows how many days you have left so nothing slips by.
What you can sign up for
Your IEP isn’t just for one thing — it’s your chance to put your whole Medicare picture together:
- Part A (hospital insurance). Most people get this premium-free if they (or a spouse) worked and paid Medicare taxes for at least 10 years.
- Part B (medical insurance). This covers doctor visits, outpatient care, and equipment. The 2026 standard premium is $202.90 a month with a $283 annual deductible.
- A way to round out coverage. You can add a Medicare Advantage plan (an all-in-one option from a private insurer), a Medigap policy to fill Original Medicare’s gaps, and a Part D drug plan for your prescriptions.
Want to confirm you’re even eligible yet, or check your Part A work credits? The Eligibility Calculator walks you through it in a couple of minutes.
When your coverage actually starts
Here’s the part people often miss: when you enroll inside that window changes when your coverage begins.
| When you enroll | When Part B starts |
|---|---|
| Any of the 3 months before your birthday month | The first day of your birthday month |
| During your birthday month, or any of the 3 months after | The first day of the month after you sign up |
The takeaway is simple — enroll early. If you sign up before your birthday month, your coverage is ready to go right when you turn 65. Wait until the back half of the window and you could face a gap of a month or more before your benefits kick in. If you have a procedure or prescription coming up, that timing matters.
The penalty for missing it
The IEP is the window you really don’t want to skip. If you don’t sign up for Part B when you’re first eligible — and you don’t have other qualifying coverage — two things can happen:
- You may have to wait. Without a Special Enrollment Period, your next chance is the General Enrollment Period (January 1 – March 31), with coverage starting the first of the month after you enroll.
- You may owe a lifetime penalty. The Part B late penalty adds 10% to your premium for each full 12 months you could have had Part B but didn’t. And it doesn’t go away — you pay it for as long as you have Part B.
There’s a similar penalty for going without creditable drug coverage, so Part D matters here too. If you want to see what a delay could actually cost you, that’s a quick conversation worth having.
One important exception
If you’re still working at 65 and have active coverage from an employer with 20 or more employees, you can usually delay Part B without any penalty. When that job-based coverage ends, you get an 8-month Special Enrollment Period to sign up. Just know that COBRA, retiree plans, and VA benefits do not count as the kind of coverage that lets you delay — so if you’re relying on one of those, treat your IEP as the real deadline.
A simple plan
For most people turning 65, the smart move is to mark the start of your IEP, enroll in the first three months, and decide on a plan to go with Original Medicare before your birthday rolls around. Run your dates through the Timeline Calculator, confirm your eligibility, and you’ll be set.
If any of this feels fuzzy — especially the “still working” or “which plan” parts — that’s exactly what I’m here for. Feel free to reach out for a no-pressure call, and we’ll make sure your start date and your coverage line up the way they should.