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If you are requesting any information about the SS-5 form of a deceased person, you should be able to identify the person with a SSN or with enough details as to avoid ambiguity. The SS Administration will not release an SS-5 if not enought details to identify the deceased are provided
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Q.2.0.1 What information can the Social Security
Adminstration give out to genealogist or family members?
A: Disclosure of information by SSA is governed mainly by the
Social Security Act itself, the Freedom of Information Act of 1974, the Privacy Act of 1974, and the Tax Reform Act of 1976. In general, information about a LIVING person MAY NOT be released to a third party unless the individual has signed a written authorization for release of that information. The fact of an individual's death, date of death, and place of death or burial may be disclosed to anyone. Any other information, other than tax return information, in a DECEASED individual's record MAY BE
DISCLOSED as long as any information in the record pertaining to other living individuals is deleted from the record prior to disclosure. The Tax Reform Act of
1976 prohibits disclosure of tax return information without the consent of the individual to
whom the record pertains. This prohibition continues even after the death of an individual.
Requests for tax return information for a deceased individual may be released to the legal
representative of the estate; surviving relative (spouse, parent, child); or heir at law, next of kin, or beneficiary of the deceased. Proof of one of the listed relationships must be provided with the request for information.
SSA originally maintained paper files of all applications for
original SSN's and applications
requesting a change in the record. In the 1970s, these files were
converted to an electronic
database. The application forms were microfilmed for retention and
the paper forms destroyed.
Current applications are microfilmed; the paper forms are retained
in the Federal Records Center
for 5 years and then destroyed.
There are 2 types of SSN application extracts which can be
furnished upon request.
(1) The Numident printout is a computer printed record which
contains all the information
on the original application form except the address and signature
of the applicant.
(2) A microprint is a print of the microfilmed application
form.
Either of these items may be furnished to anyone upon written
request and confirmation of
death where this is not detrimental to the estate and there does
not appear to be an unwarranted
invasion of privacy of a living person; i.e., the parents of the
deceased who are listed on the
application form.
[Forwarded by: Linda.Edwards@genesplicer.org, written by:
Barbara Bennett]
For cost for application information see Question no.2.1
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| Request for copy of Original Application for Social Security Card (Form SS-5), SSN Provided | $27 |
| Request for copy of Original Application for Social Security Card (Form SS-5), SSN Not Provided | $29 |
| Request for Computer Extract of Social Security Number Application, SSN Provided | $16 |
| Request for Computer Extract of Social Security Number Application, SSN Not Provided | $18 |
| Search for Information about Death of an Individual, SSN Provided | $16 |
| Search for Information about Death of an Individual, SSN Not Provided | $18 |
| SSN | Social Security Number (duh!) |
| SEX | Gender, can be M(ale), F(emale) or U(nknown). |
| DOB | Date of Birth |
| DOD | Date of Death |
| DOA | District Office Address |
| MNA | Mother's name |
| FNA | Father's name |
| PLB | Place of Birth |
| RFN | Reference Number - Internal file number. |
| IDN | Identification Code - Internal code indicating type of evidence provided. |
| NAA | Name on Social Security card. |
| NI-2 | Other name used. |
| NI-3 | Other name used. |
| PDB | Prior Date of Birth - Date of birth previously reported to Social Security Administration (SSA). |
| CSP | Citizenship Code |
| CYD/CYL | CYcle Date, the day on which a new social secuiory card is printed/issued/sent out. My guy had three of them...one in the 40s and the others recently.... knowing what CYD meant cleared up a lot of stuff for me. |
| DOC | District Office Code. example: was DOC:180, or Bridgeton, NJ |
| ETC | the Ethnic Code (and there are scads of them....) |
| FMC | : is the code for the person/group/org that requests a SS card. 1 is
for the applicant himself, 6 is for the hospital in which the child was born, etc. |
| IDN | IDentifaction number, the code for the ID the applicant showed to get his papers. n cryptic codes. The codes you are probably interested in are: |
| FCI | Foreign Country Indicator |
DI 21005.050 Beneficiary Identification Code (BIC)
These codes appear on MBR queries and microfiches.
| Code | Type | Identification |
|---|---|---|
| &or 0 | Wage Earner and Spouse | Retirement or disability |
| A | Wage Earner (Primary) | Retirement or disability |
| B | Aged Wife | First claimant |
| B1 | Husband | First claimant |
| B2 | Young Wife | First claimant |
| B3 | Aged Wife | Second claimant |
| B4 | Husband | Second claimant |
| B5 | Young Wife | Second claimant |
| B6 | Divorced Wife | First claimant |
| B7 | Young Wife | Third claimant |
| B8 | Aged Wife | Third claimant |
| B9 | Divorced Wife | Second claimant |
| BA (B10) | Aged Wife | Fourth claimant |
| BD (B13) | Aged Wife | Fifth claimant |
| BG (B16) | Aged Husband | Third claimant |
| BH (B17) | Aged Husband | Fourth claimant |
| BJ (B19) | Aged Husband | Fifth claimant |
| BK (B20) | Young Wife | Fourth claimant |
| BL (B21) | Young Wife | Fifth claimant |
| BN (B23) | Divorced Wife | Third claimant |
| BP (B25) | Divorced Wife | Fourth claimant |
| BQ (B26) | Divorced Wife | Fifth claimant |
| BR (B27) | Divorced Husband | First claimant |
| BT (B29) | Divorced Husband | Second claimant |
| C1-C9, CA- CK(C10-C20) | Child | Includes disabled or student child |
| D | Aged Widow | First claimant |
| D1 | Widower | First claimant |
| D2 | Aged Widow | Second claimant |
| D3 | Widower | Second claimant |
| D4 | Widow | Remarried after attainment of age 60 |
| D5 | Widower | Remarried after attainment of age 60 |
| D6 | Surviving Divorced Wife | First claimant |
| D7 | Surviving Divorced Wife | Second claimant |
| D8 | Aged Widow | Third claimant |
| D9 | Remarried Widow | Second claimant |
| DA (D10) | Remarried Widow | Third claimant |
| DD (D13) | Aged Widow | Fourth claimant |
| DG (D16) | Aged Widow | Fifth claimant |
| DH (D17) | Aged Widower | Third claimant |
| DJ (D19) | Aged Widower | Fourth claimant |
| DK (D20) | Aged Widower | Fifth claimant |
| DL (D21) | Remarried Widow | Fourth claimant |
| DN (D23) | Remarried Widow | Fifth claimant |
| DP (D25) | Remarried Widower | Second claimant |
| DQ (D26) | Remarried Widower | Third claimant |
| DR (D27) | Remarried Widower | Fourth claimant |
| DT (D29) | Remarried Widower | Fifth claimant |
| DV (D31) | Surviving Divorced Wife | Third claimant |
| DW (D32) | Surviving Divorced Wife | Fourth claimant |
| DY (D34) | Surviving Divorced Wife | Fifth claimant |
| E | Widowed Mother | First claimant |
| E1 | Surviving Divorced Mother | First claimant |
| E2 | Widowed Mother | Second claimant |
| E3 | Surviving Divorced Mother | Second claimant |
| E4 | Widowed Father | First claimant |
| E5 | Surviving Divorced Father | First claimant |
| E6 | Widowed Father | Second claimant |
| E7 | Widowed Mother | Third claimant |
| E8 | Widowed Mother | Fourth claimant |
| E9 | Surviving Divorced Father | Second claimant |
| EA (E10) | Widowed Mother | Fifth claimant |
| EB (E11) | Surviving Divorced Mother | Third claimant |
| EC (E12) | Surviving Divorced Mother | Fourth claimant |
| ED (E13) | Surviving Divorced Mother | Fifth claimant |
| EF (E15) | Widowed Father | Third claimant |
| EG (E16) | Widowed Father | Fourth claimant |
| EH (E17) | Widowed Father | Fifth claimant |
| EJ (E19) | Surviving Divorced Father | Third claimant |
| EK (E20) | Surviving Divorced Father | Fourth claimant |
| EM (E22) | Surviving Divorced Father | Fifth claimant |
| F1 | Father | |
| F2 | Mother | |
| F3 | Stepfather | |
| F4 | Stepmother | |
| F5 | Adopting Father | |
| F6 | Adopting Mother | |
| F7 | Second Alleged Father | |
| F8 | Second Alleged Mother | |
| G1-G9 | Claimants of Lump-Sum Death Benefits (PIC Only) | |
| J1 | Primary Prouty entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| J2 | Primary Prouty entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| J3 | Primary Prouty not entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| J4 | Primary Prouty not entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| K1 | Prouty wife entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| K2 | Prouty wife entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| K3 | Prouty wife not entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| K4 | Prouty wife not entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| K5 | Second Prouty Wife entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| K6 | Second Prouty Wife entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| K7 | Second Prouty Wife not entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| K8 | Second Prouty Wife not entitled to deemed HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| K9 | Third Prouty Wife entitled to deemed HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KA (K10) | Third Prouty Wife entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| KB (K11) | Third Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KC (K12) | Third Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| KD (K13) | Fourth Prouty Wife entitled to HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KE (K14) | Fourth Prouty Wife entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| KF (K15) | Fourth Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KG (K16) | Fourth Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| KH (K17) | Fifth Prouty Wife entitled to HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KJ (K19) | Fifth Prouty Wife entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| KL (K21) | Fifth Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Less than three quarters of coverage |
| KM (K22) | Fifth Prouty Wife not entitled to HIB | Over two quarters of coverage |
| M | Uninsured | Not qualified for deemed HIB |
| M1 | Uninsured | Qualified for but refused HIB |
| T | Uninsured | Entitled to HIB under deemed or renal provisions |
| W | Disabled Widow | First claimant |
| W1 | Disabled Widower | First claimant |
| W2 | Disabled Widow | Second claimant |
| W3 | Disabled Widower | Second claimant |
| W4 | Disabled Widow | Third claimant |
| W5 | Disabled Widower | Third claimant |
| W6 | Disabled Surviving Divorced Wife | First claimant |
| W7 | Disabled Surviving Divorced Wife | Second claimant |
| W8 | Disabled Surviving Divorced Wife | Third claimant |
| W9 | Disabled Widow | Fourth claimant |
| WB (W11) | Disabled Widower | Fourth claimant |
| WC (W12) | Disabled Surviving Divorced Wife | Fourth claimant |
| WF (W15) | Disabled Widow | Fifth claimant |
| WG (W16) | Disabled Widower | Fifth claimant |
| WJ (W19) | Disabled Surviving Divorced Wife | Fifth claimant |
1 This section reflects duplicated material.
| Added to this file 07/12/2001 | Last Updated: 01/23/90 |
Source: http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/poms?OpenView
There would be a SS-5 form for a person receiving benefits on another person's record. This is particular true if the person received payments in 1965 and after. Most dependents before that date had no need of a social security number if they weren't employed, so for those a SS-5 was probably never completed.
[The above parargaph was received from: jatkisso@mail.coin.missouri.edu (Judy Atkisson)]
[Forwarded with permission from: Elaine Behrendt
laneyb@chatlink.com]
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Q.2.5.2 I have a SSN, what can I do with it (other than ask for the copy of SS-5 form)?
A: One idea is finding a commercial service such as
credit bureru or some other enterprize that with a name and SSN will provide
information about an indvidual. You'll pay $20-45 (depends on the service)
-- this will provide, among other things, a last address.
Write to that address, to the voter registration of that area, and to
churches, cemeteries and other agencies in the vicinity to see what you can
dig up.
I don't have a name of such enterprise but perhaps a search in Yahoo.com
would help, for example seach under "Personal Information", or "Credit
Report"
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I work for Social Security, so I can help a little. I don't recall the OA-C790 (though it's probably an old form--we haven't used forms with the OA-C designation in years). I assume from its title that it was sent to you in error, as the E/R (or Earnings Record) is the actual list of the person's employers, covered earnings, and so on. f it's a "Request for E/R Action" I suspect it's a form we used to correct mistakes on the earnings record. If you can give some more info, I could check this out more closely.
As for the annotation, "Original SS-5 sent to P/C with Claim," that's a little easier. Social Security claims are taken in district
offices all around the country (these are your local Social Security offices). Years ago, all claims had to be reviewed in one of six Payment Centers, in order to ensure accuracy (Payment Centers have since been renamed Program Centers and later Program Service Centers; they are also called Processing Centers). In order to control against setting up duplicate claim folders in the program centers(and possible duplicate payments), the original SS-5 was included with the claim material (that is, the application, the earnings record of the individual, and necessary proofs and documentation). Payment would not be made unless the SS-5 was in the claims folder in the Program Service Center. Gradually, as time went on, the district offices were allowed to process more and more claims either to completion or almost so (with only a consistency check performed in the Program Center), based upon certain characteristics of each claim. After this had been going on for several years, the Office of Central Records Operations (which held the SS-5s until a claim was filed) began microfilming the original SS-5s and keeping the microfilm on site,
sending the original SS-5 into storage; as this occurred, the requirement for the original SS-5
to be in the folder in order to pay the claim was dropped.
Now, any claim file in the PCs that had reached a certain age without
being accessed was eventually destroyed. If the SS-5 was in
the folder at that time, and it had never been microfilmed (or if
the microfilm was lost), access to the SS-5 became impossible.
If it says "District Office: Philadelphia" then it means the claim (or
possibly the SS-5, though I believe the first more likely) was
taken in a local office in Philadelphia. At this time, there
are about 7 or so district offices in Philadelphia; perhaps when the claim was
filed there was only one (or perhaps it's referring to the downtown office).
[Contributed by David Ben Leavitt DLeavitt@icdc.com]
© 1995-2002 Yigal Rechtman