Form SS-5. Application for Account Number

Transcription

1 Form SS-5 Application for Account Number

2 A little history... signed the Social Security Act into law on August 14, 1935 By June 30, 1937, the Social Security Board had established field offices that assigned Social Security numbers until Since 1972, all Social Security numbers have been issued centrally from Baltimore. until 1947, Social Security card applications included the applicant's employer and the employer's address. Someone you are seeking may not have applied for a Social Security number until it was needed for Medicare benefits, beginning in 1965 for those age 65 or older. In 1967, the Department of Defense began using Social Security numbers instead of military service numbers to identify Armed Forces personnel. In 1972 the law required the Social Security Administration (SSA) to issue numbers to any legally admitted alien upon entry, and to obtain evidence of age and citizenship or alien status and identity. Up until 1963, railroad employees were assigned Social Security numbers in a series from Since 1989, an SSA program has enabled parents to automatically obtain a Social Security number for a newborn infant when the birth is registered with the state the death date may contain month and year only, especially before 1988 The SSA began to use a computer database in About 98 percent of the people in the SSDI died after 1962, although a few deaths do date back as far as 1937.

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11 ... while the online ordering system is faster, the only time it really makes sense to use it any more is where (a) the person whose form you want was born more than 100 years ago and (b) you re darned sure that there aren t any Social Security records showing the parents were under age 20 when the person was born...

12 GN Freedom of Information Act Requests current policy does not allow us to release (the mother s, the father s, the parents ) name(s) without proof of (his, her, their) death unless we have acceptable proof of death for a number holder who is at least 100 years of age, or the number holder exceeds 120 years of age. The proof of death for the parent(s) must contain enough information for us to determine that the proof of death refers to the same individual(s) shown on the requested SS-5. current policy does not allow us to release SS-5 without acceptable proof of a person s death unless the person exceeds 120 years of age.

13 SS-5 requests involving extreme age SSA can release an SS-5, in its entirety, including the parents names of the number holder (NH), in response to a request in the following instances: the NH s birth date exceeds 100 years and we have proof of the NH s death; or the NH s birth date exceeds 120 years and no proof of death exists.

14 Acceptable proofs of death include: a certified copy of a public record of death of the number holder; or a statement of death by the funeral director; or a statement of death by the attending physician or the superintendent, physician, or intern of the institution where the person died; or a certified copy of the coroner s report of death or the verdict of the coroner s jury; or a certified copy of an official report of death or finding of death made by an agency or department of the U.S. which is authorized or required to make such a report or finding in the administration of any law of the U.S.; or an obituary with sufficient identifying information.

15 Tombstone photos A census record showing the ages of the parents

16 You can appeal the decision to redact information and send in the additional evidence to the address provided in the letter that accompanies the redacted version.

17 Decoding the SSN Area number (first three digits) Prior to 1972, the area number represented the state in which the card was issued. Since 1972, the area number is assigned based on the zip code in the mailing address provided on the application for the original Social Security card. This may not be the same as his/her place of residence.

18 Where Can I Find a Social Security Number? Look carefully at the death certificate if you have it. Military records since 1967 use the person's Social Security number as an identifier. Check with the funeral home that handled arrangements --they may have a record of the deceased's Social Security number. A life insurance policy or death claim may list it. Some states use the Social Security number as a driver's license number. Look around the house--if the deceased or their minor children received any kind of Social Security benefits, you may have papers listing the Social Security number in a filebox in your home. And there's always the Social Security Death Master File (SSDMF), also known as the Social Security Death Index (SSDI).

19 SSDI SSA database allows only twelve letters for last name and nine letters for first name, with all other letters being truncated, or left off data entry errors Zip codes were not used until 1963, and the location assigned to a zip code is based on U.S. Postal Service assignment of localities to a given zip code. If you can't find someone by first and last name and birth date, try searching by first name only and as much other information as you can to narrow the search.

20 So who is in the SSDI? Had a Social Security number, AND Whose deaths were reported to the Social Security Administration. A survivor may have requested death benefits from the SSA. A family member may have notified the SSA to stop benefits to the deceased. A funeral home may have notified the SSA as a service to the family.

21 Where to find the SSDI Family Search Free, unrestricted search. This database is generally current within a few months, but does not provide social security numbers for deaths occurring within the past 2 3 years. Searching the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) in One Step Steve Morse has created a very handy search form which enhances the search abilities of many of the free SSDI search engines on the Web. You can choose from a variety of free SSDI databases to search. This is the most flexible SSDI search interface available GenealogyBank - Free SSDI Search Advanced search features make this free version of the SSDI easy to use, and it is updated almost weekly. However, results do not include social security numbers due to privacy concerns.