The Social Security Administration (SSA) has entered into agreements with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of State (DOS) for those agencies to assist SSA by collecting as part of the immigration process the information SSA needs to assign Social Security numbers and issue Social Security number (SSN) cards. DHS electronically forwards the data to SSA once the person is admitted to the United States (U.S.), to assign Social Security numbers and issue SSN cards. SSA calls this data sharing process Enumeration at Entry (EAE).
RM 00202.315 Enumeration At Entry:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100202315
Individuals applying for an immigrant visa and completing Form DS-230 “Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration,” should answer “yes” to questions 43a and 43b on the form if he or she wants to be assigned an SSN or issued a replacement card.
The individual should receive his or her SSN card within 3 weeks after arriving in the United States. The SSN card will be mailed to the same United States mailing address that is used to mail the Permanent Resident card (Form I-551).
If you answered “yes” to being assigned an SSN on Form DS-230 when applying for an immigrant visa, and have not received your SSN card within 3 weeks of being admitted to the United States, suggest that you go into an SSA office.
If you have been assigned an SSN, the office can provide you with the number. However, if you have not received your card within 14 days of your SSN being assigned, normally you will need to apply for a replacement SSN card.
After 3 weeks, you will need to submit an SSN application at one of our offices, if no SSN has been assigned or application is found pending.
You can obtain the address and directions to Social Security offices from the Social Security Office Locator, which is available on the Internet:
http://www.ssa.gov/locator
Applicants who live or receive mail in the Brooklyn, NY, Queens, NY, Phoenix, AZ, Orlando, FL, Sacramento, CA, or Las Vegas, NV area should apply at their local Social Security Card Center.
Individuals residing in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN area should apply at the Twin Cities Card Center.
Card Center Information:
http://www.ssa.gov/cardcenters/cardcenterinfo.html
Be sure to take proof of age, identity and work authorization when going into a Social Security office to inquiry about the status of your SSN or to submit an application.
Applicants need to provide at least two documents as evidence to establish age, identity and work authorization.
Example: If the immigration document, for example, I-551, is used to establish work authorization and identity, the alien must provide another document to establish age.
Proof of age is not required when applying for a replacement SSN card.
When requesting an SSN card, the documents presented, as evidence must be either originals or copies certified by the issuing agency. SSA cannot accept uncertified or notarized photocopies as evidence.
If an acceptable evidence document is in a language other than English and no other acceptable document is available, SSA will have the foreign language document translated by an authorized translator.
SSA translators comprise two groups:
-- Field office and Payment Center employees who volunteer their
services as translators
-- Central Translation Section translators who hold actual translator
positions.
GN 00301.340 Authorized Translators Defined:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0200301340
If a foreign-born person has the foreign birth certificate in his/her possession or can easily obtain a copy, he or she must submit it as proof of age. In some situations SSA can accept alternative evidence of age. The alternative evidence of age may be less than a year old, for example, a foreign passport.
You can find detailed information regarding evidence that
establishes age on the SSA Web site:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203110
The documents acceptable as evidence of identity are now based on three factors: (1) the applicant’s age, (2) the applicant’s citizenship/alien status, and (3) the relative value of documents.
Primary Identity Evidence for an alien:
-- Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card (includes temporary I-551
stamp/machine readable immigrant visa (MRIV) in combination with an
unexpired foreign passport when the I-551 Permanent Resident Card
has not yet been issued)
You can find detailed information regarding evidence that
establishes identity on the SSA Web site:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203200
Employment Authorization Documents:
-- I-551 (stamp or card)
-- MRIV with temporary I-551 language
Note: The MRIV shows the alien's identification number (“A” number) as the “Registration Number” in the upper right-hand corner of the MRIV.
The MRIV in an unexpired foreign passport that shows the statement “UPON ENDORSEMENT SERVES AS TEMPORARY I-551 EVIDENCING PERMANENT RESIDENCE FOR 1 YEAR and is endorsed with an admission stamp is the same as a valid Temporary I-551 stamp and is valid for one year from the date of endorsement by the admission stamp.
Example:
If the admission stamp shows a date of entry into the U.S. as January 4, 2010, the expiration of the temporary I-551 status will be January 3, 2011. The expiration date on the MRIV should not be used to determine when the temporary I-551 status expires. The expiration date on the MRIV only shows how long the MRIV is valid not how long the alien's temporary I-551 status is valid.
RM 00203.410 Evidence of Alien Status for an SSN Card for an Alien Lawfully Admitted for Permanent Residence:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203410
An SSN card should be received card in the mail within two weeks after the application and documents have been received and verified when applying within the United States.
However, when an alien requests an SSN or replacement card, SSA must verify his or her documents/current status with the appropriate bureau of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). If the initial online verification is not possible through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system, SSA may need to send a Form G-845 to the appropriate DHS Status Verification Office (SVO) for manual verification.
Social Security field offices can submit an additional electronic online verification, which with the majority of applications eliminates the need to send a Form G-845 along with a copy of the applicant’s immigration documents.
However, some applications still require a copy of the immigration document(s) to be mailed to the appropriate DHS SVO along with Form G-845 for manual verification.
SSA offices can also assist applicants by issuing a notice acknowledging the SSN application while documents are being verified.
RM 10205.215 Acknowledgement Requested for an Application for an SSN Card:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110205215
All cards are mailed from Social Security Headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland.
You may also wish to review “Employer Responsibilities When Hiring Foreign Workers,” that can be found on our Web site:
http://www.ssa.gov/employer/hiring.htm
You may find additional SSN and employment information on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Web site:
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=129227,00.html
When am I legally required to provide my Social Security number:
http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=78
Links to State Driver’s Licensing Agencies:
http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Motor_Vehicles.shtml
I would like to see the actual "rude" comment(s). Been around here a long time and some people are just a bit too sensitive. If you got your question(s) answered with useful information what more do you want?
What's up with the "Action failed: You have reached your quota of negative votes for the day" message?
So is one negative rating per day the limit? If you see 5 or 10 BS postings in a day you can only call BS on one?
And stop people from feeling the need to simply reply with "I agree with so and so" in order to try to tip the scales as it were when conflicting advice is given.
I guess I haven't been paying too much attention to the post reputation bar. I haven't seen it going crazy "for the fun of it" but I've not been going through all the forums much in the past couple days.
If you think the person waiting on you at the SSA office doesn't know what they are doing ask for a manager.
You can also send an e-mail to SSA:
http://www.ssa.gov/feedback/
Be sure to include your immigration status, for example, K-1, the application reference number if you have filed an application, the office where you had the problem (City State and address if there is more than once SSA office in the city) and your phone number.
She has well over 14 days before the I-94 expires, so she is still eligible to have the name changed on the SSN record and be issued a card in that name based on the K-1 status. Either go back to that office and ask to see a manager if they won't at least accept the application, or try another SSA office.
Regardless, the name on the SSN record can be correct, but a card won't be issued at any time.
So ask the genius why do I need my Form I-551 to change my name when I can do it without any work authorization.
RM 10212.001 Defining the Legal Name for an SSN
https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0110212001
B. Evidence of legal name
2. Foreign born individual
A foreign-born person’s legal name is the name shown on his or her immigration document (includes hyphens and apostrophes).
The only time you may process an SSN application in a name that does not agree with the name shown on the immigration document is if the person legally changed his or her name after the immigration document is issued. In these situations, the legal name is the name shown on the evidence of the name change.
RM 10212.055 Evidence Required to Process a Name Change on the SSN based on Marriage, Civil Union and Domestic Partnership
https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0110212055
B. Evidence of new name
Accept a name change document based on marriage, civil union or domestic partnership as evidence of the new name be shown on the card, if the new name can be derived from the document.
Any of the following changes to the last name, using the names shown on the evidence, are permitted:
-- bride takes the groom’s last name;
-- groom takes bride’s last name;
-- spouse or partner takes the other parties’ last name;
-- spouse or partner takes one part of the other parties’ compound surname;
-- compound name (with or without hyphen) of each spouse’s or partner’s original surname for either or both parties...
D. Example of acceptable evidence to process a name change based on marriage
Lisa Foster submits evidence of the name change event, her US ceremonial marriage to Bryan Lee-Walsh. She wants to change her surname to a compound surname, Foster Lee, with only part of Bryan’s surname. Since this new name can be derived from the prior names shown on the marriage document, the marriage document is acceptable evidence of the new name. We may also change Lisa’s surname to one of the following if she requests it:
-- WALSH,
-- LEE-WALSH (or reverse, with or without space or hyphen),
-- LEE FOSTER (with or without space or hyphen, Foster Lee could also have a hyphen or not have a space)
-- FOSTER WALSH (or reverse, with or without space or hyphen)
-- FOSTER LEE WALSH (in any order, with or without spaces or hyphens)
The marriage document can also be used as acceptable evidence of identity, if it shows Lisa’s prior name (Lisa Foster) and either her age, birth date, or parents’ names, that matches the data on the Numident, and if the marriage took place within the prior two years.
RM 10211.605 Request for a Replacement SSN Card Obtained for a Nonwork Purpose
https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0110211605
A. Correcting Numident data when a replacement card cannot be issued
If the alien does not provide evidence of work authorization or a valid nonwork reason, explain that we cannot issue a replacement card.
1. Alien provides documentation supporting the change
Although the FO cannot issue a replacement card, you may correct the Numident if the alien provides documentation supporting the change (e.g., a name change).
If the alien provides documentation supporting the change, process the replacement card application to update the Numident information but suppress the issuance of a card.
-- Answer “yes” to the "Suppress card issuance" question on the SSNAP Additional Information screen and record the nonwork reason documentation on the SSNAP Proof of Legal Alien Status screen.