# Social security while living abroad



## expus

Can we access and do everything in Social Security website from foreign countries as if we are in the US? Any experiences? I do not want to start something with my info and then they will want to send me SMS to a US number which I cannot get, and everything will get even more complicated. I am not near retirement age yet but just want to check my general info and make updates as necessary.


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## Bevdeforges

Check first to see if the US Embassy/Consulate in your country of residence has a Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) or a Social Security office/representative. If they do, then you probably will be better served going through the local FBU for questions or services related to US Social Security. On the SS website, there is a fair amount of information available about payment of SS benefits abroad that does not require a My Social Security account to access.

Frankly, the My Social Security account is the one thing that is pretty much useless for those of us living abroad. Last time I checked, they required a US postal address in order to open an account (though I don't know if they ever actually send anything by postal mail these days). And I suspect they won't send login information to non-US phone numbers (though I've never checked this).


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## expus

Great... Just another inconvenience for expats.
And no, I am in Turkey and they direct us to Greece for social security related things. I would easier do it when I go to US for a visit, in a social security administration office right? And do you know if the SSA sends payments to foreign banks? Not that my retirement is close but still asking...


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## Bevdeforges

expus said:


> And do you know if the SSA sends payments to foreign banks? Not that my retirement is close but still asking...


It depends. You would have to check with the FBU office for where you live. Here in France they direct deposit no problem (and they get a pretty good exchange rate on the transfer). But on the SSA website, there is a section for receiving Social Security payments while overseas (there is also a pamphlet you can download on the site) and they list the countries where you can get direct deposit or those countries where there are any sort of problems in getting payments (only a couple and they are fairly obvious).

Can't speak for the Greek FBU office, but I can assure you that the Paris consulate FBU office does a great job of taking care of SS recipients.


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## Chrissippus

expus said:


> Can we access and do everything in Social Security website from foreign countries as if we are in the US? Any experiences? I do not want to start something with my info and then they will want to send me SMS to a US number which I cannot get, and everything will get even more complicated. I am not near retirement age yet but just want to check my general info and make updates as necessary.


My experience is that I have been able to do almost everything on ssa.gov as an expat for the past ten years. I opened my account at ssa.gov while still a US resident, but my wife was able to open hers just last year as an expat. We maintain a US CMRA mailing address and US bank accounts. Of course, the SSA requires our physical address at all times which we have provided.

My use of the ssa.gov account has been mostly to print out a benefits statement letter for use in renewing my visa.

Some of the functions are not available to expats such as replacement of a lost SS card or changing the bank designated to receive your benefits payment. These changes have to be arranged through the FBU that handles your region. We have used our FBU for those purposes and it went smoothly. 

Assuming you have an original login to ssa.gov, i.e. not ID.me, then everything works the same. They do send an OTP code for login which I direct to my email account, so no SMS. If. you use ID.me then the login authentication is through that app, not SMS, and it works abroad.

In my opinion you definitely want to open and maintain your ssa.gov account, if only to insure that no hacker finds a way to open your account to steal your benefits.


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## expus

so, when your wife opened ssa account from abroad did it want to send sms to a US number ? or foreign number? or just emali was ok? so you think i can start an account with ssa website from Turkey? so the worst case is i can do it by ID me and it works through phone app, not sms message as you said right?


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## Bevdeforges

Start here: International Programs- International Programs and Resources
And definitely download the publication available here: https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10137.pdf
This page should also be of interest to you: Service Around the World - Office of Earnings & International Operations


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## Chrissippus

expus said:


> so, when your wife opened ssa account from abroad did it want to send sms to a US number ? or foreign number? or just emali was ok? so you think i can start an account with ssa website from Turkey? so the worst case is i can do it by ID me and it works through phone app, not sms message as you said right?


Yes, you can certainly open an ssa.gov account from Turkey as my wife did from Thailand. Opening an old-style account directly on ssa.gov is no longer an option. You will be required to be authenticated every time through ID.me, not the ssa.gov website. When she opened her account via ID.me no SMS was ever involved. She had to make an appointment with ID.me for the initial authentication, send a photocopy of her passport, and schedule a video call with an ID.me person who would authenticate her online. The video call included the agent taking a photo of her holding her passport in her hand. So, pretty thorough. Thereafter, she has to login only through ID.me, not directly onto ssa.gov as I do. Neither of us is ever required to receive an SMS.

By the way, if you have a friend in the US who will let you use his US cell phone or landline number just once, you can get a Google Voice account which includes SMS service. These days some banks won't send SMS codes to GV numbers, but many do. After the initial setup, you won't need to use your friend's phone number again. GV is highly recommended for expats.


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## TomMM

expus said:


> Can we access and do everything in Social Security website from foreign countries as if we are in the US? Any experiences? I do not want to start something with my info and then they will want to send me SMS to a US number which I cannot get, and everything will get even more complicated. I am not near retirement age yet but just want to check my general info and make updates as necessary.


The SS login process can send verification codes to foreign cell phone numbers. I’ve listed my cell in France and receive the verification codes. You also have the option of downloading a set of precomputed codes that can be used.


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## Chrissippus

TomMM said:


> The SS login process can send verification codes to foreign cell phone numbers. I’ve listed my cell in France and receive the verification codes. You also have the option of downloading a set of precomputed codes that can be used.


If the OP does not already have an existing ssa.gov account, he will not be able to open an account that is authenticated by the ssa.gov login process. New accounts are only authenticated by Id.me, both initially and at every subsequent login. Id.me, which does not send SMS codes. Id.me only authenticates through its cell phone app.


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## TomMM

New ssa.gov accounts now use login.gov for account creation which also uses sms verification codes. I use it with my cell # from Paris.


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## sirpo2011

expus said:


> Can we access and do everything in Social Security website from foreign countries as if we are in the US? Any experiences? I do not want to start something with my info and then they will want to send me SMS to a US number which I cannot get, and everything will get even more complicated. I am not near retirement age yet but just want to check my general info and make updates as necessary.


I Used Skype 1 800 from overseas Philippines to set up direct deposit to US financial institute just make sure you give a USA address for them to send correspondence to with future questions or concerns they may have 

Mail delivery overseas in some country's is dicey at best and if they don't get a timely reply you don't get the next monthly check


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