Getting A Social Security Card in person

I want to get a replacement Social Security card in person (which is recommended). How do I do that?

Gather the documents you need to prove your identity.

Proof of identity must show 3 key facts about you (which you may be able to pull off with just one document):[49]

    Proof of your age;
    Proof of your citizenship or legal presence in the United States;
    Proof that you are still alive.

You may need to show only one “primary” ID document,[50] if that one document shows all 3 key facts about you by itself. Primary ID documents that are accepted as proof of identity for a replacement Social Security card are:

    U.S. state-issued driver license;
    U.S. state-issued ID card;
    U.S. passport.[51]

The documents you submit must show your legal name AND provide biographical information (date of birth, age, or parents’ names) as well as physical information (a photograph or physical description — height, eye and hair color, etc.). Generally, ID without an expiration date are acceptable if they were issued in the past 2 years.[52] If you don’t have these documents, find the information you need in this chapter’s Table of Contents on PG. 23.

Find your local Social Security Administration (SSA) Field Office or Card Center.

Search online at http://www.socialsecurity.gov or call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213.

Go to your local SSA Field Office or Card Center and fill out the application.Meet with an SSA employee to verify your identity.

Remember, the SSA agent will evaluate the evidence you bring in and make a judgment call as to who you are. If you are there in person with as much identifying documentation as possible, hopefully all of your documents combined will be enough to prove your identity (even if each of your documents, considered separately, might not be enough).

IMPORTANT: HOW TO GET A SOCIAL SECURITY CARD WHEN YOU DON’T HAVE PRIMARY ID:

!

If you have been incarcerated since you were young and/or for a long time, you may never have had primary ID documents, or they may have been lost or destroyed. Unfortunately, the SSA’s rules are not written with your situation in mind. Fortunately, even if you do not have primary ID, you may be able to get a replacement Social Security card. Gather as much identifying information and documentation as you can, and include it with your application. Then, on a case-by-case basis, the SSA will decide whether or not you have presented enough proof of who you are.IF YOU DO NOT HAVE PRIMARY ID, USE AS MANY OF THE FOLLOWING AS YOU CAN:

    Authorized Birth Certificate — Without a primary ID document, your birth certificate will be the most important document you submit. But the birth certificate alone is not enough to prove your identity. The SSA still needs proof that the person named on the birth certificate is alive and that you are that person!Other proof of identity — The more evidence of your identity you provide, the better. Any ID with your photo and name on it, even if it is not government-issued, will make it easier to prove who you are to the SSA. Other proof that can help: an employee ID; a school ID; a library card; a prison ID card, a U.S. Military ID; a health insurance or Medicaid/Medi-Cal card (not Medicare); or a certified copy of your medical record from a health clinic, doctor, or hospital that treated you.[53] SSA employees are required to consider each applicant’s situation and evidence on a case-by-case basis.
  1. 49

    Soc. Sec. Admin., Program Operations Manual System, RM 10210.405 Evidence of Identity for an SSN Card (March 20, 2013). ↑

  2. 50

    Soc. Sec. Admin., Program Operations Manual System, RM 10210.020 Policy for Number of Documents Required for an SSN Card (March 20, 2014). ↑

  3. 51

    Soc. Sec. Admin., Program Operations Manual System, RM 10210.405 Evidence of Identity for an SSN Card (March 20, 2013); RM 10210.420 Priority List of Acceptable Evidence of Identity Documents (Nov. 17, 2014). ↑

  4. 52

    See Application for a Social Security Card (Form SS-5), Soc. Sec. Admin. (Aug. 2011). ↑

  5. 53

    Soc. Sec. Admin., Program Operations Manual System, RM 10210.405 Evidence of Identity for an SSN Card (March 20, 2013); RM 10210.420 Priority List of Acceptable Evidence of Identity Documents (Nov. 17, 2014); RM 10210.430 What Documents Are Not Evidence of Identity for an SSN Card (March 20, 2013). ↑