Apply no earlier than 30 days before your scheduled employment start date. If you have lost your Social Security card and need a replacement, please note that the documentation and eligibility requirements are the same as for an initially issued SSN card (see above). Social Security Numbers are issued for the duration of your lifetime, so the SSN on the new, replacement card will be the same as the SSN issued for you previously. If you remember the number, you may continue to use it even if you do not have the physical card. SSA uses the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program to verify your nonimmigrant student status and determine if you are eligible for an SSN.

Typically, it consists of a unique blend of alphanumeric characters, where the first two digits indicate the state code, and the remaining characters form the taxpayer’s identification sequence. TIN is required for businesses to legally engage in interstate transactions of goods and to comply with VAT regulations. It helps in tracking and managing tax-related transactions, ensuring that businesses pay their due taxes on time. It also aids in maintaining transparency in the business ecosystem and preventing tax evasion. Your Social Security number might be on some of your tax records or financial documents. You might also be able to get it from a family member who knows it, or you might ask a former employer that maintained records of your employment.

SSA estimated that the cost at that time of issuing an enhanced card to almost 300 million card holders would range, depending on the type of card, from $5.1 billion to $10.5 billion. The estimates included the costs of verifying the identity of the applicant and establishing a system to collect a user fee (Donnelly 1999). To some extent, passage of the REAL ID Act in 2005, which imposes standards on states for the issuance of driver’s licenses and identification cards, diminished the need for SSA to develop a card for identification (SSA 2008). When a person lacking a valid driver’s license registers to vote, the individual can provide his or her name, date of birth, and the last four digits of his or her SSN instead.

The universality of SSN ownership has in turn led to the SSN’s adoption by private industry as a unique identifier. In addition, the SS-5s were filmed on 16 millimeter, noninflammable film strips. In June 1938, officials bragged “This film is so compact that the entire file of 40 million photographed SS-5s is stored in 10 ordinary letter-size file cabinets” (Fay and Wasserman 1938, 25). The findings and conclusions presented in the Bulletin are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Social Security Administration.

How Social Security Numbers Work

The Board planned to use the year one attained age 65 as part of the SSN, thinking that once an individual attained age 65, the SSN would be reassigned to someone else. But at a meeting on January  23, 1936, the unemployment compensation delegates objected to the use of what is ssn number in india digits to signify age because they thought a number of workers would falsify their age. As a result, a new scheme adopted by the Board on February 14 consisted of a 3-digit area code, a 2-digit month of birth, and a 4-digit serial number. A TIN is required when a business engages in the sale of goods and services that attract VAT. It is mandatory for all entities involved in interstate trade to have a TIN.

However, SSNs were in use for many years before electronic verification was in place. During the 1950s, SSA initiated a manual screening routine of the microfilm file to search for a previously assigned number. The publicity campaign and the Post Office Department’s efforts resulted in over 22 million completed applications as of December 22, 1936, 28 days after the initial distribution of employee applications (Wyatt and Wandel 1937, 62).

Evidentiary Requirements

It allows for the accurate filing of VAT returns, helps businesses claim input tax credits, supports auditing and investigations, and ensures compliance with VAT regulations. Additionally, having a TIN boosts a business’s credibility and promotes transparency in the marketplace, making it a valuable asset for any organisation. A full list of requirements, such as documentation that proves age, identity, and U.S. citizenship or immigration status, is included on the form. In some circumstances, an individual may change their Social Security number. The SSN was created in 1936 as part of The New Deal to provide for retirement and disability benefits.

SSN & Banking

1. However, difficulties in recruiting personnel and setting up offices would make it impossible for the Bureau to handle the workload.
2. Social Security numbers and cards are issued by the Social Security Administration (SSA).
3. The first task for the postmen was to make up lists of employers on their routes.
4. As a result, given present rates of assignment and existing geographic allocations, several states currently have fewer than 10 years’ worth of SSNs available for assignment.
5. SSA will continue to assess its policies and procedures to further strengthen the integrity of the enumeration process to prevent SSN fraud and misuse, as well as to protect the important personal information with which it is entrusted.
6. After submitting a TIN application, applicants can monitor its progress through an online tracking system available in most states.

You can replace your card for free if it is lost or stolen if you meet the eligibility requirements noted above. If you do not currently have an on-campus job or off-campus training authorization, the SSA will not issue a replacement card. A Social Security number is not required to obtain a driver’s license, cell phone, credit card, insurance, admission to an academic institution or other “non-work” reasons.

1. The Social Security Administration will mail your number and card as soon as all of your immigration information has been verified.
2. Generally, numbers were assigned beginning in the northeast and moving south and west, so that people applying from addresses on the east coast had the lowest numbers and those on the west coast had the highest numbers.
3. In 1988, to prevent photocopy counterfeits, a security feature that displays as “void” when photocopied was added.
4. In October 1936, the Social Security Board selected a design submitted by Frederick E. Happel, an artist and photo engraver from Albany, NY, for the original Social Security card, for which Happel was paid $60.5 The Board placed an initial order for 26 million cards.
5. Federal survey-takers are also finding that as respondents have become more aware of the risk of identity theft, they are less willing to supply SSNs that are useful in linking the agency’s survey data with administrative records from other agencies.

The next two digits referenced group numbers of issuing offices and the last four represented the order within each group. Individuals in the U.S. are asked to provide their SSNs to obtain credit, open bank accounts, obtain government benefits, make major purchases, and more. The tax preparation software (Sprintax) provided for international scholars will automatically generate Form W-7 for nonresident aliens who require ITINs for their dependents in order to claim them on their tax returns. If you have a valid EAD card issued by USCIS, you are automatically eligible to apply for a Social Security Number. SSA will continue to assess its policies and procedures to further strengthen the integrity of the enumeration process to prevent SSN fraud and misuse, as well as to protect the important personal information with which it is entrusted.

Some states have a current allocation of SSNs that will last for many years, while others have a pending shortage. As a result, given present rates of assignment and existing geographic allocations, several states currently have fewer than 10 years’ worth of SSNs available for assignment. Establishing the Social Security infrastructure was impeded for 3½ months by the lack of funds due to a filibuster of the 1936 Deficiency Bill (a government-wide appropriation bill similar to current Omnibus Budget Reconciliation bills) by Senator Huey Long (D–LA).