# SS Foreign Enforcement Questionnaire 2022



## DonAndAbby (Jan 7, 2013)

I was just going through my e-mail communications with SS in Manila, and came across this informative e-mail from 2019. Sharing FYI.

Dear Mr. L,

This refers to the annual questionnaire (SSA-7162 or SSA-7161).

Please be informed that this form is initially released every June 1 of each year. It is mailed to the address that is currently shown in your benefit record. If you have changed your address but have not reported such a change to Social Security, then the form will not be mailed to the new address until your benefit record is updated.

There is an annotation on top of this form that reads: “Failure to complete and return this form within 60 days will result in suspension of benefits.” Please do NOT worry about it because the schedule of such a suspension is during the first week of February of the following year. It does not necessarily mean that the benefit will be suspended on the 61st day. Just treat it as an instruction to submit the completed form immediately and simply by regular mail. Also, the form was originally designed for those residing in the USA. The agency knows that if a foreign address is involved, it may take a while before it is received and then returned.

If the form released on June 1 is not received back by the SSA Wilkes Barre Office, a second form will be released every October 1 of the same year. This is to provide another chance prior to suspending a benefit record. If the first form was returned and received prior to October 1, you will probably not receive this second form anymore. In case you do, simply fill it out again and re-send it to the SSA Wilkes Barre Office by regular mail.

The crucial information or date for you to remember is the first week of February. If you have not received your benefit during the first week of February, the most frequent reason for such a suspension is the failure to return the annual questionnaire. Therefore, it is suggested that prior to sending the original, completed SSA-7162 or SSA-7161, please scan and save a copy. In the event your benefit record is suspended during the first week of February, you can email us the copy of the form you sent and we can use such a scanned copy as a work around to immediately reinstate a suspended benefit record. IMPORTANT: Do NOT send us the copy if your benefit is not suspended because we normally cannot take any action on it. SSA Manila office does not have a barcode reader.

Hope this gives you a clearer information on this specific form. Thank you very much.

Note: To prevent suspension of benefits in February, the appropriate time/month to report that you or your wife has not received the form is in November of each year. Email a message expressing non-receipt of the annual questionnaire by November to [email protected].


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

DonandAbby, thank you for this valuable information, I'm going to add this to our Useful Links for Expats posting.

Useful links for expats SS Foreign Enforcement


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## Maria620 (2 mo ago)

SSA-7161 -- Received a second notice this year (2022)?
My uncle was filling out this form for several years before the pandemic, and he never had a problem until this year. He received a mailing to his home in Manila with SSA-7161 again, stating that it is a second request because I guess they didn't receive the first one.... 
--He can scan a copy before sending this time, but is there anything else he should do to prepare in case it is lost again?
--The other problem is that he's not in Manila right now. He's visiting family in the U.S. until after the 60-day deadline has passed. Should he scan the form in Manila and send it from the U.S., even though he would have to make his own envelope? Or should we find a way to get the original to him to fill out?
--Is it okay to mail the form from within the US to the destination in Wilkes-Barre, PA?
--Also wondering if we should try to contact the Manila SSA office through the FBU inquiry form on their website, or email them, or try to phone them, or just re-submit and hope for the best?
Thanks in advance for any advice on any of these questions. (My dad is disabled, living back in the Ph, and his brother is his representative payee. I was told I couldn't be a rep payee myself because I'm in the US, not the Ph.)


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

Maria620 said:


> SSA-7161 -- Received a second notice this year (2022)?
> My uncle was filling out this form for several years before the pandemic, and he never had a problem until this year. He received a mailing to his home in Manila with SSA-7161 again, stating that it is a second request because I guess they didn't receive the first one....
> --He can scan a copy before sending this time, but is there anything else he should do to prepare in case it is lost again?
> --The other problem is that he's not in Manila right now. He's visiting family in the U.S. until after the 60-day deadline has passed. Should he scan the form in Manila and send it from the U.S., even though he would have to make his own envelope? Or should we find a way to get the original to him to fill out?
> ...


My gosh Maria? He's in the United States of America so I'm not sure if this has been tried yet but has he visited the Social Security office in PA and if it's too small in Wilkes-Barre, PA then he could go to the next larger city for more services, but it appears there's an office.

*Here's the information in Wiles-Barre, PA:*

Social Security Wilkes-Barre Office
Social Security Office

Processes and makes determination on all types of application for Social Security Retirement, Survivors Disability and Medicare Benefits, Processes claims for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Informs employers, employees and self-employed persons of their rights and responsibilities under the Social Security Program, Assists beneficiaries with necessary reporting of events which may affect continuing eligibility, Accepts applications for original and duplicate social security numbers.

7 North Wilkes-Barre Blvd.
Luzerne, PA 18709

*Eligibility: *Older adults and individuals with disabilities. Social Security numbers/cards for all eligible.
*Hours: *By appointment Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday 9:00am to 3pm; Wednesday 9am to 12:00pm. Recorded information available 24 hours / 7 days.
(866) 686-9505 -
Get Directions
Visit Website
*Phone/FAX Numbers*

(800) 772-1213 Main SSA
(866) 686-9505 Wilkes-Barre SSA Office
(800) 325-0778 TDD
(866) 686-9505 Wilkes-Barre SSA Office
*Intake Procedure: *Call or visit website to schedule an appointment.
*Intake Requirements: *Varies with program.
*Facility/ADA access: *Fully accessible
*Geographical Area: *Luzerne
*Languages Spoken: *English
*Public Transportation: *on local LCTA bus route
*Services:*

Burial Benefits
Disability Benefits
Retirement Benefits
Social Security Numbers
Survivors Insurance


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## BGCExpat (Oct 26, 2015)

Please forgive my ignorance on the subject, I’ve still got a couple of years before I can start receiving benefits… Isn’t this the type of thing best suited for email or text verification? I can see if SS wants to verify a physical address, but the actual response is so much more efficient done electronically…. Seems they could save a lot of cash by just emailing the form every year…


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## M.C.A. (Feb 24, 2013)

BGCExpat said:


> Please forgive my ignorance on the subject, I’ve still got a couple of years before I can start receiving benefits… Isn’t this the type of thing best suited for email or text verification? I can see if SS wants to verify a physical address, but the actual response is so much more efficient done electronically…. Seems they could save a lot of cash by just emailing the form every year…


I'm in the same boat as you BGC but from what I've learned the form has to be serialized so if it's not serialized SS won't accept it. Here's a link I created on the subject SS Foreign Enforcement Questioner


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## Maria620 (2 mo ago)

Thanks for the help, MCA! I have an update, but first a recap:
My dad is mentally disabled, and moved back to the Ph from the US many years ago because of it. And, because he can't manage his own funds, his brother is his representative payee and handles forms like the SSA-7161 every year. I was writing earlier in order to figure out the best way to deal with being sent a second notice telling my uncle that they didn't receive the first form, the added complication being that my uncle is traveling for the holidays..... It turns out that normally my uncle will ask friends or family traveling to the US to please hand-carry the form to the US, and drop it in the mail from there. Apparently this didn't work this year because mail service is just slower everywhere as compared to before the pandemic; he received the form later than usual, and also maybe it took longer on the mailing back.

.... I found out (by calling the Wilkes-Barre toll free number and waiting on hold for 70 minutes) that the SSA-7161 is available at any SSA office throughout the US -- but _thank you_ MCA for explaining that these bar codes are serialized and so we decided not to just fill out any SSA-7161, even if it is provided by the local SSA office.... Admittedly, I didn't check to see if a local office can print out specific bar codes; the person on the toll-free line would give me only general information because I'm not the actual representative payee. I'm just the one who has the patience to call the toll-free number, because it's my sister and I who'll pay for my dad's medical care if his benefits are interrupted.... So, we decided to express mail the second notice from my uncle's home in Manila to his son's place in CA, and then fill out and do regular mail from there. And I guess we'll find out in February if this has worked. We're scanning a copy this time just in case we have an interruption and need to email that to the Manila office. (My uncle usually takes a photo, but I imagine that might be harder to process than a PDF.)


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## Maria620 (2 mo ago)

And BGC, as to the question of why in this day age, they don't make the process easier.... My understanding is that one of the most common, if not the most common form of fraud (intentional or not) is to fail to report the death of a beneficiary. Lying is a lot harder if one is required to do it for many months on end.... I just mention this because for many years I felt so angry, like no one believed that my dad was really sick; it helped a lot when I realized that the system had a good reason for being the way it is.


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## Maria620 (2 mo ago)

By the way, this is kind of unrelated, but for anyone trying to send something between the Philippines and NY/NJ -- I highly recommend Johnny Air Cargo. They're not as convenient as Fed Ex because they have few locations, but they are less expensive if you happen to be sending to/from NY/NJ.... Please feel free to move this post elsewhere, not sure where it goes best. I no longer live in the NY/NJ area, but like most Fil-Ams in the Eastern US, I maintain contact with family in that area and can vouch for Johnny Air and the fact that it really has been around since the 1980's.... Also, it operates in very well-established Fil-Am areas and so I don't see it having any trouble doing business any time soon.


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## Maria620 (2 mo ago)

.... Lastly, in case my story sounds fake to anyone, I have a screenshot showing the time I spent calling the SSA. (I made a typo earlier -- I called the national SSA number, 1-800-772-1213, not the Wilkes-Barre office because Wilkes-Barre is too far for me to drive from where I am.).... And if the timing of the mailings I describe sounds implausible, it's possible that my uncle fibbed to cover over his procrastination on the first mailing.... Thanks for everyone's patience reading all this. I hope these notes will help someone someday. I will post again if the benefits get interrupted.


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