Your Medicare Initial Enrollment Period
Seven months, but not all seven are equal.
Your Initial Enrollment Period (IEP) is your first chance to sign up for Medicare. It lasts 7 months: the 3 months before the month you turn 65, that month, and the 3 months after.
When you sign up within it decides when coverage starts, and missing it can mean a gap in coverage and a lifelong penalty.
When coverage starts
Since January 1, 2023, the rules are simpler than they used to be:
- Sign up in any of the 3 months before your birthday month: coverage starts the first day of your birthday month.
- Sign up in your birthday month or any of the 3 months after: coverage starts the first day of the month after you sign up.
If your birthday is on the 1st
Medicare treats you as turning 65 the day before your birthday. So if you were born on the 1st of a month, your Initial Enrollment Period, and your earliest coverage date, move one month earlier. Our enrollment period calculator handles this for you.
Drug coverage uses the same window
Your Initial Enrollment Period for Part D (or a Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage) generally matches your Part A and B window. If you go without Part D or other creditable drug coverage for 63 days or more in a row after it ends, a Part D penalty can apply.
Your Medigap window starts separately
Your 6-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period doesn't follow the IEP. It starts the first month you have Part B and are 65 or older. If you delay Part B because of job-based coverage, your Medigap window waits too.
If you miss it
If you don't sign up during your IEP and don't qualify for a Special Enrollment Period, you'll generally have to wait for the General Enrollment Period, January 1 to March 31, with coverage starting the month after you sign up. You may also owe a Part B late enrollment penalty of 10% for each full 12-month period you could have had Part B.
Common questions
Signing up in the 3 months before your birthday month means coverage starts on time, with no gap. Signing up later in the window delays coverage to the month after you sign up.
If you're enrolled automatically, your coverage starts the first day of your birthday month without you doing anything. You'd use your IEP only to make other choices, such as joining a drug plan or Medicare Advantage plan.
If you're covered by a group health plan based on current work, you may be able to delay Part B and sign up later during a Special Enrollment Period without a penalty.
Want help with your own choices?
Every state runs a State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) with trained counselors who give free, unbiased Medicare help and do not sell plans. Find yours on our Medicare by state pages, or call Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) (TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week).
Planning the rest of your coverage in retirement? We can help with life insurance later in life and final expense coverage.
Sources
- When does Medicare coverage start?, Medicare.gov. Checked September 29, 2026.
- When can I sign up for Medicare?, Medicare.gov. Checked September 29, 2026.
- Avoid late enrollment penalties, Medicare.gov. Checked September 29, 2026.
- Choosing a Medigap Policy (March 2026), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Checked September 29, 2026.
General information about the federal Medicare program, not advice about your situation. Figures are for 2026 unless stated and change every year; last reviewed September 29, 2026. Quote My Policy is a private company. Not connected with or endorsed by the United States government or the federal Medicare program.
Quote My Policy does not sell Medicare plans on this site. For plan-specific help, contact Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) (TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) or your State Health Insurance Assistance Program.