Social Security Representative Payee
If you are looking to help a Social Security beneficiary manage the retirement benefits and/or Supplemental Security Income they receive, you must apply to become their representative payee. The SSA requires all beneficiaries who are incapable of managing their own payments to have a representative payee.
While this authorization is necessary for many caregivers, it is worth noting that it involves a great deal of accountability. This position requires meticulous recordkeeping of all a beneficiarys benefits and how they are used, so be sure you are willing and able to take on this responsibility. In instances where there is not a family member or friend available to serve as a rep payee, the SSA will appoint a qualified organization to manage the recipients benefits.
Visit SSA.gov/payee to learn more about the SSA Representative Payee Program.
Who Can Sign The Application
If the person you are helping is, or will be, with you and able to sign the completed application, he or she must be the one to sign it . The application will then be automatically forwarded to us and we will begin processing.
However, if the person is not with you or not able to sign the application, we will mail it to him or her for verification and signature.
Can I Talk To Social Security On Behalf Of Someone Else
You can choose an attorney or other qualified individual to represent you. You can also have more than one representative. However, you can’t have someone who, by law, can’t act as a representative, or someone the Social Security Administration has suspended or disqualified from representing others.
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What Is A Social Security Disability Representative
Disability Claims Representatives are people who represent those who are applying for Social Security Disability benefits. Disability representatives receive a percentage of your back pay as compensation for their work on your claim. This percentage cannot exceed 25% of the back pay you are entitled to.
Who May Not Serve As A Rep Payee
A rep payee must meet SSAs qualifications. Generally, a person is not qualified to be a rep payee if the person:
- has been convicted of a violation of the Social Security Act
- has been convicted of an offense resulting in imprisonment for more than one year
- receives SSA benefits through a rep payee
- previously served as a rep payee and was found by SSA or a court to have misused benefits or
- is a creditor, which means the person provides the beneficiary with goods or services in exchange for something, like money.
SSA may allow a creditor to be a rep payee if the person poses no risk to the beneficiary, if the creditors financial relationship with the beneficiary presents no substantial conflict of interest, and if the creditor is any of the following:
- a relative living in the same household as the beneficiary
- the beneficiarys legal guardian or legal representative
- a facility licensed or certified as a care facility under State or local law
- a qualified organization authorized to collect a fee for performing rep payee services for the beneficiary
- an administrator, owner, or employee of the facility where the beneficiary lives, if SSA cannot locate an alternative rep payee or
- any other individual SSA deems appropriate based on a written determination.
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What If Your Loved One Has A Private Medicare Plan Or Medicare Supplement Insurance
Your loved ones Medicare Advantage, Part D or Medicare Supplement plan may also require authorization to share personal health information with you. Each plan has its own policy, so youll need to contact your loved ones plan directly. You can get the information you need in the following ways:
- View the privacy policy on the plan web site. Make sure the policy applies to your loved ones specific plan, since insurance companies often offer many different plans.
- Read the plan Explanation of Benefits, which generally outlines how personal health information may be used and how its protected.
Finally, if youre helping a loved one with Medicare decisions during the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period , be sure to read this article on tips for caregivers for AEP.
What Are Representative Payees Duties
The representative payee must do the following:
It is important for the representative payee to have a separate bank account for the deposit of the monthly SSI or SSDI check. Other funds should not be co-mingled with this account and only the representative payee should be a signer on the account.
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What Makes You A Candidate For Disability
The law defines disability as the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.
How many quarts do you need to work to qualify for disability?
You must earn at least 40 Social Security credits to qualify for Social Security benefits. You earn credits when you work and pay Social Security taxes.
Who is the owner of a representative payee account?
A representative payee bank account is an account used by an appointed person or organization to manage the finances of a Social Security beneficiary. Representative payees are chosen by the Social Security Administration to administer the account for a beneficiaryusually an older or disabled person.
Reporting Changes To The Ssa
The representative payee must tell the SSA if the beneficiary:
- starts or stops working
- begins to receive child support
- begins to receive other benefits, such as workers’ compensation, black lung benefits, or a government pension
- received more income than anticipated in a month, or unexpected assets
- is no longer disabled, or medically improves
- is convicted of a crime, or
Finally, if the payee realizes that the beneficiary has mistakenly received too much money from the SSA, the payee should contact the SSA and return it, or face fines and penalties.
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How Do You Become An Authorized Representative For Your Loved One
To name you as an Authorized Representative, your loved one must complete a form called the Medicare Authorization to Disclose Personal Health Information. If your loved one is unable to complete the form, you may do it as long as you have legal documentation giving you that right. The form lists the documents that Medicare accepts for this purpose, including in the case of a deceased loved one.
The form must be printed, completed and mailed to the address shown in the directions. It cannot be filled in or submitted online.
Note that your loved one may put a time limit on an authorization or may change or revoke it at any time.
Can I Call Ssa On Behalf Of Someone Else
You can choose an attorney or other qualified individual to represent you. You can also have more than one representative. However, you can’t have someone who, by law, can’t act as a representative, or someone the Social Security Administration has suspended or disqualified from representing others.
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What Is A Non Attorney Representative For Disability
How do I become a non representative Social Security representative? Non attorney representatives must possess a bachelors degree or equivalent qualifications, pass a written examination administered by the Social Security Administration, secure professional liability insurance or equivalent, undergo a criminal background check, and complete continuing
What If Social Security Wont Honor My Mothers Power Of Attorney
You are right the Social Security Administration does not honor durable powers of attorney. Powers of attorney are created under state law and are not necessarily binding on federal agencies. A representative payee manages benefit payments for beneficiaries who are incapable of managing their Social Security payments. You need to contact your local Social Security office to apply to be a payee.
If you do become representative payee for your mother, her Social Security payments should not go into your account. You should open a separate account to receive her benefits that should be in her Social Security number, not yours. You may be able to continue to use her current account, but you will need to discuss this with the bank.
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Summary Of Benefit Programs:
Social Security Disability Insurance
This program requires a person with a disability to have worked for a substantial period in employment covered by Social Security. Beginning at age 18, a dependent, adult child of a worker who is retired, disabled or deceased, may be eligible for benefits if the child became permanently disabled before age 22. Benefits also may be paid to a widow or surviving divorced spouse. SSDI is funded through the Social Security Trust Fund.
Supplemental Security Income
This federally funded program is based on financial need – it is not necessary for persons with disabilities to have worked under Social Security. Basic medical criteria for eligibility are the same for both SSI and SSDI. Recipients of benefits under both programs also may be eligible for Medicaid or Medicare benefits.
Medicaid
Medicaid is a jointly funded, Federal-State health insurance program for low-income and needy people. It covers children, the aged, blind, and/or disabled and other people who are eligible to receive federally assisted income maintenance payments. A separate application for Medicaid must be filed through the Virginia Department of Social Services .
What Is The Process For A Beneficiary To Request To Change Their Rep Payee
A beneficiary should contact their local SSA office and explain the reasons for wanting to change a rep payee. A beneficiary can find their local SSA office on the SSA website. The SSA office should then make a determination and notify the beneficiary. If the beneficiary knows who they want to be their rep payee, the beneficiary should also ask that person to complete the appropriate SSA form.
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For The First Time In 100 Years Multiple Votes Will Be Required To Decide The Next Speaker Of The House But How Long Could The Process Go On For
There was a major mutiny in the Republican Party on Tuesday when 19 members defected from the partys chosen candidate for Speaker of the House, Rep. Kevin McCarthy.
For the first time since 1923 multiple votes will be required to secure a majority in the vote to decide who will lead the Lower Chamber. McCarthy had expected a backlash from elements of the Trump-aligned Freedom Caucus, but the scale of the desertion will have come as a shock.
*** Special Alert ***
Reminder: When faxing in evidence, please keep the SSA-827 as either the First or Last Page. This decreases the likelihood of the evidence splitting because of an embedded barcode on the SSA-827.
ARS is an application that allows appointed representatives to view electronic folder documents in real time, to download eFolder contents including multimedia files, and upload medical evidence and other documents directly into a claimant’s eFolder.
Using ARS will give you real time and up-to-date access to your claimant’s electronic folders for cases pending at the initial, reconsideration, hearings, and appeals levels. Representatives may also download status reports with key information regarding their pending and recently closed cases at the hearings and appeals levels.
Note for representatives that do not request direct pay:
Non-attorney representatives that do not request direct payment of authorized fees are still eligible to enroll for eFolder access. This demonstrates how to fill out the 1699 for eFolder access only . This form should be used as a guide when filling out the official 1699. Please do not submit the annotated form.
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Social Security Authorized Representative
The Social Security Administration requires representatives to be authorized to participate in a beneficiarys affairs but does not recognize the POA designation. If you are trying to help a loved one with Social Security applications, claims or appeals, you will need to apply to be their authorized representative by completing the SSA-1696 Appointment of Representative Form. This application is also available to complete online here. A representative can be a relative, friend, attorney, caseworker or other qualified person, and the SSA will thoroughly vet this person before accepting their appointment.
Keep in mind that it is always preferable to speak to a live person, either by phone or in person, at the Social Security office to answer questions and ensure you are using the right forms and terminology. To learn more about becoming an SSA Authorized Representative, visit SSA.gov/representation.
How To Become A Non
Applying for Social Security benefits is challenging for any applicant, particularly if suffering from a disability. In many cases, the applicant needs a representative to assist with the process and to pursue, if necessary, an appeal of a denial of benefits. Although attorneys can help, federal law allows anyone — family member or friend — to represent a claimant. The law also allows qualified persons who aren’t licensed attorneys to engage in the business of representing applicants before the Social Security Administration.
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What Is A Non
A non-attorney representative is a professional who represents people who are applying for disability benefits, such as the advocates here at Advocator.com. The Advocator Group will only collect a fee if your claim is awarded. Theyre paid out of the back pay you receive once the disability claim is approved.
Spending The Disability Benefits On Behalf Of The Beneficiary
A representative payee must deposit the benefit checks in a checking or savings account and use the money to pay for the disabled person’s:
- medical and dental expenses, and
- personal care items.
If there is money left over, it can be used to pay for rehabilitation expenses, education, past-due bills, family expenses, or entertainment for the disabled person, such as movie tickets. After that, any remaining money should be saved in an interest-bearing account.
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Why Does Social Security Not Recognize Power Of Attorney
The Social Security Administration does not recognize power of attorney as conferring authority to manage another person’s benefits. … Your chief responsibility in this role is to make sure your mother’s benefits are used to meet her essential needs, such as food, shelter, household bills and medical care.
How Does Ssa Decide Whether To Change A Beneficiarys Rep Payee
SSA tries to select the person, agency, organization, or institution that will best serve the interests of a beneficiary. SSA has provided its employees with guidance about the order of preference for selection of a rep payee. SSA can choose not to strictly follow its order of preference if SSA decides it is in the beneficiarys overall best interest to choose someone lower on the preference list. However, if a beneficiary wants to change their rep payee to an individual higher on the preference list, that may be enough for SSA to approve the change if the individual is otherwise qualified. The following SSA preference list for adults may provide guidance on the likelihood that SSA will grant a request to change a beneficiarys rep payee:
Payee Preference List For Adults
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Additional Programs And Information:
Disability Decisions
A team comprising a staff physician or clinical psychologist and a professionally trained analyst makes the disability decision. Applications for Social Security disability benefits may be completed online at Apply for Benefits. The public may also call SSAs toll-free number, 772-1213, to schedule an appointment in person or by phone. Find the most conveniently located Social Security office at the Social Security Office Locator. To apply for Medicaid, visit Virginia’s Medical Assistance Programs.
Fraud Prevention
The Virginia DDS works in conjunction with SSAs Office of the Inspector General through a Cooperative Disability Investigations unit to prevent fraud in the disability program. The CDI program was established in 1998 to effectively pool resources and expertise to prevent fraud in SSAs disability programs. The CDI programs primary mission is to obtain evidence that can resolve questions of fraud before benefits are ever paid. Reports from CDI Units can also be used to cease benefits of in-payment beneficiaries during the continuing disability review process. For more information about CDI, OIG, or to report fraud, waste, or abuse, visit or contact Brett Fielding at the number listed below.
SOAR in Virginia
School Evidence
For more information about the disability process, visit Childhood Disability for School Professionals. More information is also available from the Social Security Administration’s Benefits Planner.