Social Security Card Evidence of Age
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Applying for social security is not something you can put off for some time down the line. You may think that because you’re still young, something that is thought to primarily function as financial assistance for retirees is not something you need.
Understand though that benefits of social security range far beyond just serving as a kind of retirement fund. You may be able to benefit from it if you become disabled or if you get divorced, and it may even be able to help out your children.
To put it simply, the best time to get social security is the earliest moment you can.
Now, actually getting social security, and by extension a social security card, is easier said than done. Obviously, the government has to be vigilant in protecting against those who may attempt to trick the system for their own gains.
Because of that, the application process can be tricky. Even doing something as simple as proving your age can be a challenge.
In this article, we will discuss what you need to do provide adequate social security card evidence of age. Hopefully by the end of this article, you will be able to supply all the evidence needed by the Social Security Administration so that you can enjoy the program’s benefits when the right time comes. We are in no way affiliated with any government agency. You can find free forms by dealing with the Social Security Office directly.
What’s the Easiest Way to Provide Social Security Card Evidence of Age?
There’s no denying that working with the Social Security Administration can be stressful at times, especially when you’re trying to get your Social Security Card for the first time or simply attempting to have it replaced.
Now, if you do want to make that process as simple as possible, there’s a way to do that. During the application process, what you will want to do to get things moving along is to present your birth certificate.
That particular document is crucial in the application process. With it, you can save yourself a lot of time and a lot of stress.
Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, not everyone one has their birth certificate readily available. You may not even have any access to it. In those cases, you will need to provide other kinds of documentation.
Other Documents That Can Be Used to Prove Your Age
Without a birth certificate, your next best bet is to present one of the following types of documentation, with those being a religious record made before the age of five that also shows your date of birth, a U.S. hospital record of your birth, or a U.S. passport.
The process of getting your own U.S. passport can be quite complex itself and will also require you to present certain documents. For more about that process, you can read about it on the https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/apply-renew-passport/how-to-apply.html.
For now, we are going to focus more on how you can acquire a religious record that documents your birth or a U.S. hospital record that does the same thing.
How Can I Acquire a Religious Record to Present as Social Security Card Evidence of Age?
A religious record of age is defined by the Social Society Administration as a “document issued by a religious authority on which is entered the claimant’s DB.” The DB stands for date of birth.
There are a few things to keep in mind if you want to use that religious record to prove your current age to the Social Security Administration
First off, the aforementioned religious record of your date of birth is “preferred” only if it was established before you turned five years old.
Furthermore, the record must also be properly certified.
In this scenario, the certification must come from the official custodian of those records. On top of that, the person certifying the document must also provide proof of his/her standing within the religious organization. Proof can come in the form of the organization’s official letterhead or via a seal used by that custodian that is related to his/her position within the organization.
Also, the person responsible for certifying the record must confirm the identity of the organization while indicating his/her role in relation to the handling of the records.
An employee of the Social Security Administration can also certify the religious record.
Notably, you and anyone else who may handle the record must avoid altering any of the entries or adding any type of information that was clearly not present in the document originally. The presence of alterations or bits of information clearly added later on may cause the Social Security Administration to question the validity of the document.
Examples of religious records that you can submit to the Social Security Administration to verify your age include a certificate of baptism, a Bris certificate, as well as cradle rolls and naming certificates.
One more thing to note here is that the Social Security Administration will not accept mementos, keepsakes, and any other types of souvenirs in place of a religious record of your birth.
How Can I Acquire a Hospital Birth Record to Present as Evidence?
There are two types of hospital birth records that you can choose to submit, according to the Social Security Administration. The first type is a medical record which indicates your birth in a specific hospital and the other is known as a hospital birth certificate.
If you are supplying a hospital birth certificate, it must be certified by an official of that hospital who is serving as the custodian of the record.
When it comes to the certification process, the one linked to hospital birth records is quite similar to the one connected to religious records.
The person who will provide the certification must be able to indicate his/her status within the organization using a letterhead or a seal and that same individual is required to identify his/her relationship to the records.
The birth records can also be certified by an employee of the Social Security Administration.
Also, your name, your date of birth, and your mother’s name must be present on the birth record so that the administration can compare what is written down on that record to other documents.
Once again, entries that have been altered or were clearly added later on may cause the Social Security Administration to question the legitimacy of the birth record. Souvenirs remain unacceptable as evidence as well.
One last thing when it comes to birth records, those that come from the City of Faith Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma are not admissible as proof of your age.
A Few Other Things to Note
As much as possible, you should try to provide one of the previously mentioned documents to the Social Security Administration to prove your age, but in cases where that is not possible, there are other forms of documentation that can be used.
Examples include a federal or state census record, a military record, a marriage record, a school record, a driver’s license, and even a life insurance policy. There are several more documents that can be used, though the administration may not accept those as quickly as a birth certificate, a passport, a religious record, or a hospital birth record.
It can honestly be a lot of work to simply get the documents needed to prove your age for social security. The actual application process can be quite tiring as well.
We urge you to let us help with the application or replacement process so that you don’t end up having to devote too much of your time to just acquiring a new Social Security card.