Updating ssn after naturalization

[Sherja 17]

I got citizenship in December 2020 but ssn office has been close due to covid .I call and was told to mail in the naturalization certificate with the form to update my ssn . But I only have one copy . Is it safe to mail it it I meant what if it gets lost ? Secondly how long do I have to update my ssn ? Is there a penalty for not updating it ? Thx

[Allaboutwaiting 2,500]

No penalty for not updating. You can do it later.

Edited September 25, 2021 by Allaboutwaiting

[Adujarric 67]

15 minutes ago, Sherja said:

I got citizenship in December 2020 but ssn office has been close due to covid .I call and was told to mail in the naturalization certificate with the form to update my ssn . But I only have one copy . Is it safe to mail it it I meant what if it gets lost ? Secondly how long do I have to update my ssn ? Is there a penalty for not updating it ? Thx

As someone here said they only need proof that you are a citizen so instead send them a passport card which is only 30 dollar to replace if lost. Beats paying $500+  For a new certificate. Thats how i am going to do it in the future now is not a priority to me. 

[arken 4,197]

Not worth mailing naturalization certificate. You can update it any time when you can walk in to a SSA office- next week, next month, next year or next decade.

Edited September 25, 2021 by arken

[Sherja 17]

Thank You 

[EternalForeigner 57]

A few days ago I called my local social security office and most of the time it wasn’t even getting through or connecting. After attempting to dial about 30 times in a row, it finally rang. I think I waited maybe 10 minutes before I talked to an employee. I thought I’d be scheduled for an appointment during the call, but instead he took my info and scheduled me to be given a phone call for an appointment next week. He said there were about 10 people ahead of me to be called for appointments for that particular office. So now I have to wait until I get a call back from them and figure out when I can go in. 

[Demise 1,094]

19 hours ago, Sherja said:

I got citizenship in December 2020 but ssn office has been close due to covid .I call and was told to mail in the naturalization certificate with the form to update my ssn . But I only have one copy . Is it safe to mail it it I meant what if it gets lost ? Secondly how long do I have to update my ssn ? Is there a penalty for not updating it ? Thx

There's no real penalty for not updating it. You've got a few options:

Send in the SS-5 and naturalization certificate in

Get a US Passport and passport card and just mail in the passport card as proof of citizenship.

Do nothing and wait until SSA reopens to the public.

[Sherja 17]

Thanks for your response. I’m going to mail in the passport card with the form . I feel more comfortable doing that .

[KanKarot 0]

30 minutes ago, Sherja said:

Thanks for your response. I’m going to mail in the passport card with the form . I feel more comfortable doing that .

Yes, I did that last year and sent them my passport. Just make sure you use FedEx, UPS etc. where you have the option of requiring a signature upon receipt. I remember I was provided by the nearest SS office with the specific address to use when using a private carrier (vs. a PO Box). They returned my passport through FedEx after a week.

 

Good luck!

[Sherja 17]

47 minutes ago, KanKarot said:

Yes, I did that last year and sent them my passport. Just make sure you use FedEx, UPS etc. where you have the option of requiring a signature upon receipt. I remember I was provided by the nearest SS office with the specific address to use when using a private carrier (vs. a PO Box). They returned my passport through FedEx after a week.

 

Good luck!

Thank you. So the passport card would be ok ? Or I have to send the actual passport book?

[HRQX 4,145]

4 minutes ago, Sherja said:

So the passport card would be ok ?

Yes: https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110210505

U.S. passport, including:

• Machine readable passports;
• Passport cards;
• e-passports;
• Non-machine readable passports.

[Sherja 17]

Wow this is great information. Thank you very much ..I appreciate your response 

[BBlueB 35]

 

Detailed thread here

[superhuman 1]

I got my naturalization certificate, do i really need to wait 10 days or i can go to local SSN office and update?

[MrKo 60]

On 4/25/2022 at 3:00 PM, superhuman said:

I got my naturalization certificate, do i really need to wait 10 days or i can go to local SSN office and update?

They will verify your certificate number with USCIS. The reason for waiting 10 days is to allow sufficient time for your new citizenship status to be synchronized within the government system, so that when your local SS office tries to verify your document/status, it will not get an error. I've seen people going to DMVs or SS offices right after they become citizens only to be told their citizenship status can not be verified.

 

You can also apply for a US passport first, and when you receive your passport, you'll have more ways to prove your citizenship.