When Can I Sign Up for Medicare? Enrollment Periods

Initial Enrollment Period (IEP)

This is your first chance to sign up for Medicare. It's a 7-month window: it starts 3 months before the month you turn 65 and ends 3 months after that month. Miss this window and you may have to wait to sign up and pay a monthly late enrollment penalty for as long as you have Part B.

Exactly when your coverage starts depends on the part and the timing. Per Medicare.gov, premium-free Part A generally starts the month you turn 65, or the month before if your birthday falls on the first of the month.

For Part B, or Part A if you pay a premium for it, signing up before your birthday month means coverage starts the month you turn 65. Signing up during your birthday month or in the 3 months after means coverage starts the following month instead.

Still working at 65?

If you or your spouse have health coverage through current employment when you turn 65, you don't have to sign up for Medicare right away. Per Medicare.gov, you can generally enroll later during a Special Enrollment Period without a late enrollment penalty. That period starts the month after your Initial Enrollment Period ends and runs until 8 months after the employer coverage or the employment itself ends, whichever comes first.

If you sign up while still covered, or within the first full month after that coverage ends, you can also ask to delay your Part B start date by up to 3 months.

Fall Open Enrollment Period

Every year, from October 15 to December 7, anyone with Medicare can change their health plan or prescription drug coverage for the following year. This is when you can switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan, go the other direction, switch between Medicare Advantage plans, or change your Part D drug plan. Changes made during this window take effect January 1. Switching from Medicare Advantage back to Original Medicare during this window does not, by itself, guarantee you can buy a Medigap policy without health questions. A licensed agent can check whether you qualify for guaranteed issue in your situation.

Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period

From January 1 to March 31 each year, if you're already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance to switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan or drop it and go back to Original Medicare (adding a standalone Part D drug plan if you want one). This is separate from, and runs on the same dates as, the General Enrollment Period below, but the two serve different people.

If you joined a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time during your Initial Enrollment Period, Medicare.gov also gives you a separate one-time chance to switch plans or go back to Original Medicare within the first 3 months you have Part A and Part B.

General Enrollment Period

Also January 1 to March 31, this period is for people who missed their Initial Enrollment Period and still need to sign up for Part A or Part B for the first time. Coverage starts the month after you sign up, and a late enrollment penalty may apply.

Special Enrollment Periods (SEPs)

Outside all of the windows above, certain life events open a Special Enrollment Period to change your Medicare Advantage or drug coverage. Medicare.gov lists examples including moving outside your plan's service area, losing employer or union coverage, losing Medicaid eligibility, moving into or out of a nursing home, being released from incarceration, your plan losing its Medicare contract, or gaining other creditable coverage such as TRICARE or VA benefits. Each SEP has its own timeframe, typically a couple of months around the event.

• Initial Enrollment Period: 7 months around your 65th birthday, one time
• Fall Open Enrollment: October 15 to December 7, every year
• Medicare Advantage OEP: January 1 to March 31, one change, only if already on Medicare Advantage
• General Enrollment Period: January 1 to March 31, for late Part A/B sign-ups
• Special Enrollment Periods: tied to specific life events, timing varies