The payee must keep accurate records of your payments and how they are spent and regularly report that information to Social Security. Your payee also should share that information with you.
Can SSI see what you buy? Contrary to popular belief, SSI does not look into the purchases you make. While financial institutions may share transactional data with government agencies when required by law, SSI recipients can rest assured that their purchasing choices remain private.
Although there are no rules on what you have to spend your SSI benefits on, it is best practice to spend your SSI benefits to meet your basic personal needs first, before you spend money on any other expenses. This can include housing and utility costs, food, clothing, and personal care items.
If you're not sure if it's okay to use money for a specific item (for example, paying a bill owed before you became payee), contact us before you spend the money. To continue receiving SSI, a recipient must not have resources worth more than $2,000 ($3,000 for couples). We don't count all resources.
According to SSA policy, misuse of benefits occurs when a payee does not use the benefits for the beneficiary's use and benefit or save unused benefits for the beneficiary's future needs. To protect the beneficiary's interests, SSA employees must obtain and review information relevant to all allegations of misuse.
It cannot be used for basic needs like food, shelter, clothing and personal items that the monthly SSI benefit is intended to pay for. The representative payee must keep records of how the dedi- cated account money is spent. SSA will ask for annual reports on how funds were disbursed from the dedicated account.
Where the overpayment is $2,000 or less and you file a request for reconsideration or waiver, Social Security will waive any collection of the over-payment (unless you were at fault in creating the overpayment). This is known as the SSI $1,000 Rule.
It is important to keep receipts, bank statements, and maintain an expense record for at least two years as verification of expenditures.
To get Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, things you own that we count must be worth $2,000 or less for an individual, or $3,000 or less for a couple.
SSI Reviews: Periodically, the SSA reassesses whether beneficiaries still qualify for the program. Depending on individual circumstances, this can occur as often as annually or as infrequently as every six years, and it often includes examining bank accounts.
For those receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the short answer is yes, the Social Security Administration (SSA) can check your bank accounts because you have to give them permission to do so.
You can use the money you get from Social Security to pay for whatever you need—including paying for your utilities and rent. SSI doesn't have limits on how much you can spend for rent. Find out if you qualify for SSDI benefits. Pre-qualify in 60 seconds for up to $4,018 per month and 12 months back pay.
Exit from the SSI program can be due to death, medical recovery, excess income (earned or unearned), excess resources, or a change in living arrangements. In many cases, for instance when dealing with excess income, payments are suspended.
What are the signs that Social Security is investigating you? Signs may include increased communication from the SSA, requests for documentation, discrepancies in records, monitoring of changes in your circumstances, patterns of claims, interviews or home visits, and suspicious activity reports.
Under the SSA rules, you are allowed to own one vehicle without it counting as one of your resources. The SSA is not concerned with the value of the vehicle.
The SSA doesn't care what the money is spent on. If you spent double that on other things and then couldn't pay a bill, that would be a problem for you, but no, they do not care. SSI is your money for which you must have qualified in order to be approved. Entertainment and leisure are parts of life.
It may be possible for you to save money and be able to keep your SSI payments and waiver services. The four most common ways to save money and not lose benefits are with an ABLE account, a Special Needs Trust, an Individual Development Account, and a PASS account.
SSI is generally for individuals who don't earn more than $2,019 from work each month. The income limit increases for couples and when parents apply for children. We also look at other sources of income besides your job, like disability benefits, unemployment, and pensions.
However, the SSI program does not include the value of a home in the total assets of its applicants or recipients, so buying a home in and of itself will not cause one to lose SSI.
If the value of your resources that we count is over the allowable limit at the beginning of the month, you cannot receive SSI for that month. If you decide to sell the excess resources for what they are worth, you may receive SSI beginning the month after you sell the excess resources.
When a recipient has been outside the United States, the first period of 30 consecutive days of absence is counted beginning with the day after the day the recipient departs from the United States and ending with the day before the day on which he or she returns to the United States.
SSI benefits may cease due to various reasons such as: Changes in income or assets: An increase in income or assets can affect your eligibility for SSI benefits. Changes in health: If your health improves to the point where you no longer meet the SSA's disability standards, your SSI benefits could be discontinued.
Yes, receiving SSI doesn't prevent you from getting a tax refund, though you're not likely to get a refund unless you qualify for one of the credits discussed above. Read more about tax refunds for disability recipients.
Under the PMV rule, the SSA says any food or shelter “is presumed to be worth a set maximum value,” which is one-third of the FBR plus $20.