Getting A Social Security Number For A New Baby
The easiest way to get a Social Security number for your child is at the hospital after they are born when you apply for your childs birth certificate. If you wait to apply for a number at a Social Security office, there may be delays while SSA verifies your childs birth certificate.
Your child will need their own Social Security number so you can:
- Claim your child as a dependent on your income tax return
- Open a bank account in their name
- Get medical coverage for them
- Apply for government services for them
Were There To Provide Comfort During Difficult Times
The loss of a loved one can be both emotionally and financially difficult. Some widows, widowers, and children may receive to help them cope with the financial loss. The number of credits needed to provide benefits for survivors depends on the workers age when he or she dies.
Unmarried children who are under age 18 can be eligible to receive Social Security benefits when a parent dies.
How To Stop Social Security Check Payments
The SSA can not pay benefits for the month of a recipients death. That means if the person died in July, the check received in August must be returned. Find out how to return a check to the SSA.
If the payment is by direct deposit, notify the financial institution as soon as possible so it can return any payments received after death. For more about the requirement to return benefits for the month of a beneficiarys death, see the top of page 11 of this SSA publication.
Family members may be eligible for Social Security survivors benefits when a person getting benefits dies. Visit the SSA’s Survivors Benefits page to learn more.
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How To Receive Federal Benefits
To begin receiving your federal benefits, like Social Security or veterans benefits, you must sign up for electronic payments with direct deposit.
If You Have a Bank or Credit Union Account:
- Call the Go Direct Helpline at .
If You Don’t have a Bank or Credit Union Account:
- Direct Express debit card – a pre-paid debit card. Get help by calling the Go Direct Helpline at .
Make Changes to an Existing Direct Deposit Account:
On Go Direct’s FAQ page, learn how to make changes to an existing direct deposit account. You also may contact the federal agency that pays your benefit for help with your enrollment.
Service From 1940 Through 1956
If you were in the military during this period, including attendance at a service academy, you did not pay Social Security taxes. However, your Social Security record may be credited with $160 a month in earnings for military service from Sep. 16, 1940, through Dec. 31, 1956, under the following circumstances:
- You were honorably discharged after 90 or more days of service, or you were released because of a disability or injury received in the line of duty or
- You are still on active duty or
- You are applying for survivors benefits and the veteran died while on active duty.
Contacting Social Security
- “TTY” 800-325-0778.
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Am I Eligible For Veterans Pension Benefits
You may be eligible for the Veterans Pension program if you meet these requirements.
Both of these must be true:
- You didnt receive a dishonorable discharge, and
- Your yearly family income and net worth meet certain limits set by Congress. Your net worth includes all personal property you own , minus any debt you owe. Your net worth includes the net worth of your spouse.Find out about Veterans Pension rates
And at least one of these must be true about your service:
- You started on active duty before September 8, 1980, and you served at least 90 days on active duty with at least 1 day during wartime, or
- You started on active duty as an enlisted person after September 7, 1980, and served at least 24 months or the full period for which you were called or ordered to active duty with at least 1 day during wartime, or
- You were an officer and started on active duty after October 16, 1981, and you hadnt previously served on active duty for at least 24 months
And at least one of these must be true:
- Youre at least 65 years old, or
- You have a permanent and total disability, or
- Youre a patient in a nursing home for long-term care because of a disability, or
- Youre getting Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income
Can A Debt Collector Take My Social Security Or Va Benefits
Generally no, debt collectors cant take your Social Security or VA benefits directly out of your bank account or prepaid card.
After a debt collector sues you for the debt and wins a judgment, it can get a court order for your bank or credit union to turn over money from your account or prepaid card. This is called a garnishment. A U.S. Department of Treasury rule requires banks to automatically protect certain federal benefits from being frozen or garnished if they are direct deposited into your account. There are some exceptions to this rule, which are explained below. Read about how the automatic protection works.
Benefits covered by this rule:
- Social Security
- Federal Railroad retirement, unemployment and sickness
- Civil Service Retirement System
- Federal Employee Retirement System.
Your bank or credit union must automatically protects 2 months worth of benefits
If a collector tries to garnish money in your account, your bank must look at your account history to see if you received any of the above benefits by direct deposit in the last 2 months. The bank must protect 2 months worth of benefits from garnishment and let you use that money. If your account has more than 2 months worth of benefits, your bank can garnish or freeze the extra money. However, if that extra money that is garnished is exempt from garnishment under federal or state law, you may be able to go to court to have your money released.
Benefits on a prepaid card
Exceptions to automatic protection
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Earn Ssa Work Credits In Some Countries
You may not have enough credits from your work in the United States to qualify for retirement benefits. But, you may be able to count your work credits from another country. The SSA has agreements with 24 countries. If you earned credits in one of those countries, they can help you qualify for U.S. benefits.
It’s Not Uncommon For Veterans To Receive Both Social Security And Veteran Disability Benefits
There are several kinds of benefits from Social Security that you may be able to get.
1. Social Security Disability Insurance : Benefits to disabled wage earners and some members of their families if the former wage earners are “insured.”
- Must have worked long enough to become insured and work must be recent
- No resource or asset limits
2. Supplemental Security Income : A means-tested benefit program for the aged , blind, or disabled.
- Work history does not matter
- Monthly maximum payment is the Federal Benefit Rate
- Usually $771 for an individual and $1,157 for a disabled couple in 2019
- Resource or asset limit of $2,000 for an individual or $3,000 for a couple
3. Social Security Retirement: Benefits paid once you have reached your full retirement age.
- Your full retirement age is based on when you were born and can be as early as age 62 or as late as age 70
- If you choose to take early retirement” then your monthly benefits will be reduced, and continuing to work can affect your benefit amount
If you are getting VA disability compensation and then apply for Social Security benefits, Social Security will review any evidence that the VA reviewed in making their decision.
NOTE: While you dont need to be totally disabled to be eligible for VA disability compensation, you are either totally disabled or not disabled under Social Security’s definition of disability.
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Additional Social Security Benefits For Veterans
by Joel Ban | Mar 10, 2010 | Analysis of Social Security and Veterans Law, Social Security Disability, Social Security Law, Veterans Law, Veterans News |
Disabled Veterans may be entitled to an enhanced Social Security Disability Benefit or extra social security disability benefits. Veterans whove had active duty service between January 1957 to December 31, 2001 and planning for retirement may be entitled to the benefit. Previously we have commented on social security disability and veterans benefits here.Those that apply for social security disability benefits may receive a higher social security payment because of your military service, for active duty any time from 1957 through 2001 . You may receive up to $1200 per year of earnings credit credited at time of application which can make a substantial difference in Social Security Benefit monthly payments upon your retirement. You must bring your DD-214 to the Social Security Office and you must ask for this benefit to receive it! This is something to put in your files for when you apply for Social Security down the road. It is NOT just for retirees, BUT anyone who has served on active duty between January 1957 to December 31, 2001.FYI this benefit is not automatic, you must ask for it! Many Veterans were in service between 1957 and 2001. When you apply for Social Security disability benefits keep this in mind.
Effects On The Budget
The largest source of uncertainty in the estimate of savings over the next 10 years involves determining the number of new disability beneficiaries who will be 67 after January 2020. The number of veterans age 67 and older who receive disability compensation has increased in the past decade as Vietnam veterans have aged. CBO projects that the number of new recipients age 67 and older will decline in the coming years as the share of the veterans’ population in that age group falls. However, the health of the veteran population also affects the number of older veterans on the rolls, as do outreach efforts by VA and others to inform veterans about the benefit and other factors.
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Service From 1978 Through 2001
For every $300 in active duty basic pay, you are credited with an additional $100 in earnings up to a maximum of $1,200 a year. If you enlisted after Sep. 7, 1980, and didn’t complete at least 24 months of active duty or your full tour, you may not be able to receive the additional earnings. Check with Social Security for details.
Am I Receiving Extra Social Security Credit For My Military Service
Social Security rules are complicated and change often. For the most recent Ask Larry columns, check out maximizemysocialsecurity.com/ask-larry.
Boston University economist Larry Kotlikoff has spent every week, for over two years, answering questions about what is likely your largest financial asset your Social Security benefits. His Social Security original 34 secrets, his additional secrets, his Social Security mistakes and his Social Security gotchas have prompted so many of you to write in that we feature Ask Larry every Monday. Find a complete list of his columns here. And keep sending us your Social Security questions.
Kotlikoffs state-of-the-art retirement software is available here, for free, in its basic version. His new book, Get Whats Yours the Secrets to Maxing Out Your Social Security Benefits, was published in February by Simon & Schuster.
Below, Larry explains the file-and-suspend and spousal benefit strategy to Paul, which got Paul and his wife an extra $50,000 in benefits.
Anonymous Sante Fe, N.M.: A retired military friend of mine brought to my attention that I may be due special extra earnings for active duty for training and inactive duty service in the armed forces reserves. I served in both of those capacities from March 1980 through July 1984 then went to inactive reserve status until Nov. 1986 when I received an honorable discharge.
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How You Get Credit For Special Extra Earnings
Special extra earnings credits are granted for periods of active duty or active duty for training. Here’s how the special extra earnings are credited on your record:
- From 1957 through 1977, you are credited with $300 in additional earnings for each calendar quarter in which you received active duty basic pay.
- From 1978 through 2001, for every $300 in active duty basic pay, you are credited with an additional $100 in earnings up to a maximum of $1,200 a year.
If you enlisted after September 7, 1980, and didn’t complete at least 24 months of active duty or your full tour, you may not be able to receive the additional earnings.
NOTE:
How Do Benefits Work And How Can I Qualify
While you work, you pay Social Security taxes. This tax money goes into a trust fund that pays benefits to:
- Those who are currently retired
- To people with disabilities
- To the surviving spouses and children of workers who have died
Each year you work, youll get credits to help you become eligible for benefits when its time for you to retire. Find all the benefits Social Security Administration offers.
There are four main types of benefits that the SSA offers:
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Learn about earning limits if you plan to work while receiving Social Security benefits
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Social Security Q& a: Applying For Benefits As A Veteran
QUESTION: I served in the military, and I’ll receive a military pension when I retire. Will that affect my Social Security benefits?
ANSWER: You can get both Social Security retirement benefits and military retirement at the same time. Generally, we don’t reduce your Social Security benefits because of your military benefits.
When you’re ready to apply for Social Security retirement benefits, go to socialsecurity.gov/applyonline.
This is the fastest and easiest way to apply. For your convenience, you can always save your progress during your application and complete it later. We thank you for your military service!
QUESTION: I’m planning to retire next year. I served in the Navy back in the 1960s and need to make sure I get credit for my military service. What do I need to do?
ANSWER: You don’t need to do anything to apply for the special credit for your military service — it is added automatically. For service between 1957 and 1967, we will add the extra credits to your record at the time you apply for Social Security benefits.
For service between 1968 and 2001, those extra military service credits have already been added to your record. So you can rest assured that we have you covered.
Read our online publication, Military Service and Social Security, at socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10017.html. Then when the time comes to apply for retirement, you can do it conveniently and easily at socialsecurity.gov/retireonline.
Tricare Extended Care Health Option
TRICAREs Extended Care Health Option provides financial assistance to beneficiaries with qualifying special needs for an integrated set of services and supplies. To use the ECHO program, qualified beneficiaries must:
- Be enrolled in the Exceptional Family Member Program through the sponsors branch of service.
- Register with case managers in each TRICARE region.
In addition to support from the Exceptional Family Member Program and Military OneSource special needs consultants, your family may be eligible to receive a range of benefits from federal and state programs committed to providing assistance for families with special needs.
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Social Security And You: Vets Being Duped By Social Security Rumor Mill
Not a week goes by when I dont get emails, such as the one here, from veterans who have been led to believe that they are missing out on extra Social Security benefits allegedly payable to people who served in the military:
Tom: Ive been told that as a veteran, I should be getting an extra $120 per month added to my Social Security check. They said all I have to do is take my DD-214 down to my local Social Security office and they will start paying me the extra money. What can you tell me about this?
As is so often the case with these rumors, there is a tiny kernel of truth to the story. But then false information takes over and things get blown way out of proportion.
Here are the facts: If you were in the military anytime up until 2001, the government may add a small amount of additional earnings to your Social Security record. And note that I am NOT talking about extra money added to your Social Security check. These are simply extra earnings incorporated into your Social Security earnings record the earnings record upon which your Social Security monthly benefit is based.
Get Ssa Benefits While Living Abroad
U.S. citizens can travel to or live in most, but not all, foreign countries and still receive their Social Security benefits. You can find out if you can receive benefits overseas by using the Social Security Administrations payment verification tool. Once you access the tool, pick the country you’re visiting or living in from the drop-down menu options.
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What Is A Social Security Card
Your Social Security card is an important piece of identification. You’ll need one to get a job, collect Social Security, or receive other government benefits.
When you apply for a Social Security number , the Social Security Administration will assign you a nine-digit number. This is the same number that is printed on the Social Security card that SSA will issue you. If you change your name, you will need to get a corrected card.