How to apply for supplemental social security income

Supplemental Security Income is a safety-net program administered by the Social Security Administration that provides cash assistance to people with limited income and financial resources who are 65 or older, disabled or blind. Most people seeking SSI benefits must call Social Security at 800-772-1213 or visit their local Social Security office to apply. That goes for all those applying on the basis of age.

Table of Contents Show

Ways to Apply
Retirement or Spouse's Benefits
Disability Benefits
Appeal a Disability Decision
Medicare Benefits
Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Costs
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits
Survivors Benefits
Children's Benefits
Check the Status of Your Application
How do I supplement my Social Security income?
What is the difference between Social Security and SSI?

Local offices fully reopened April 7 after being closed to walk-in traffic for more than two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Social Security recommends calling in advance and scheduling an appointment to avoid long waits.

Disabled or blind adults may apply online if they meet all these criteria:

They are between 18 and 65.
They have never married.
They have not previously applied for SSI.
They are applying at the same time for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Social Security’s primary benefit program for disabled people. (It is permissible to receive Supplemental Security Income on top of your SSDI benefits.)

Completing the multistep online application can be a lengthy process, but you don’t have to do it in one sitting — the Social Security website allows you to save the form and return to it later.

If you are applying for SSI on behalf of a disabled child, you can start the process by filling out a Child Disability Report online. You will need to call 800-772-1213 to schedule an appointment with your local Social Security office to complete the SSI application.

Be prepared to get some papers together: You’ll need to extensively document your income, work history, financial assets, living arrangements and, if applying on the basis of blindness or disability, your medical history. Social Security has an online checklist.

Keep in mind

Supplemental Security Income is paid out of general U.S. Treasury funds, not from Social Security taxes. You need not have worked a certain amount, or paid FICA taxes, to be eligible.
SSI benefits are available to residents of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands. Residents of other U.S. territories (including Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and the U.S. Virgin Islands) cannot receive SSI.

Ways to Apply

You can complete an application for Retirement, Spouse's, Medicare or Disability Benefits online.

If you cannot submit your application online:

You can call us at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778); or
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, visits to our offices are by appointment only for certain services. Please visit our Coronavirus page to see if you may be eligible for an in-person appointment.

If you live outside the U.S. you can contact the Federal Benefits Unit that provides service to your country of residence.

Retirement or Spouse's Benefits

You can apply online for Retirement or spouse's benefits or continue an application you already started.

You must be at least 61 years and 9 months old and want your benefits to start no more than four months in the future.

If you qualify for both retirement and spouse's benefits, please read:

If you are eligible for a spouse's benefit and your own retirement benefit

If you are almost 65, your application for benefits will include Medicare.

Information You May Need to Apply:

Retirement Benefits
Spouse's or Divorced Spouse's Benefits

Disability Benefits

You can apply online for disability benefits or continue an application you already started.

Information You May Need to Apply:

Disability Benefits

Appeal a Disability Decision

If your application for disability benefits was denied recently for medical reasons, you can request an appeal online or continue working on an appeal you already started.

Medicare Benefits

You can apply online for Medicare or continue an application you already started.

If you are almost 65 but you don't want your retirement benefits to start, you can just apply online for Medicare using the "Retirement/Medicare Benefits" application.

Information You May Need to Apply:

Medicare

Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Costs

You can apply online for Extra Help with Medicare prescription drug costs.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits

If you want to apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), please read:

How Do I Apply For SSI?

Survivors Benefits

You cannot report a death or apply for survivors' benefits online.

If you need to report a death or apply for survivors' benefits, call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). You can speak to a Social Security representative between 7 AM and 7 PM Monday through Friday. You can also contact your local Social Security office.

In most cases, the funeral home will report the person's death to Social Security. If you want them to do that, you will need to give the deceased's Social Security Number to the funeral director so they can make the report.

If you are getting benefits on your spouse's or parent's record:

We'll automatically change any monthly benefits to survivor benefits after the death is reported to us.
We may be able to pay the Special Lump Sum Death Benefit automatically.

If you are getting retirement or disability benefits on your own record, you will need to apply for the survivor benefits. We will check to see whether you can get a higher benefit as a widow or widower.

If you are not getting benefits, you should apply for survivor benefits promptly because, in some cases, benefits may not be retroactive.

Information You May Need to Apply:

Widows/Widowers or Surviving Divorced Spouse's Benefits
Child's Benefits
Mother's or Father's Benefits
Lump-Sum Death Payment
Parent's Benefits
(You must have been dependent on your child at the time of his or her death.)

Children's Benefits

You cannot apply online for benefits for a child. Please read:

Information You Need to Apply for Child's Benefits

Check the Status of Your Application

After you apply, you can check the status of your application online. You will need your Social Security number and confirmation that you received when you applied to use this service.

How to increase your Social Security payments:.

Work for at least 35 years..

Earn more..

Work until your full retirement age..

Delay claiming until age 70..

Claim spousal payments..

Include family..

Don't earn too much in retirement..

Minimize Social Security taxes..

Social Security benefits may be paid to you and certain members of your family if you are “insured” meaning you worked long enough and paid Social Security taxes. Unlike Social Security benefits, SSI benefits are not based on your prior work or a family member's prior work.