How to get a Social Security number

US citizens are eligible from birth, and the vast majority are assigned a number through the Enumeration at Birth program when the birth is registered — which is why most Americans have never applied for one.

Lawful permanent residents (green card holders) are eligible.

Non-citizens with work authorization from the Department of Homeland Security are eligible. That includes H-1B, L-1, O-1 and similar work visas, F-1 students with authorized employment such as on-campus work, CPT or OPT, J-1 exchange visitors with sponsor authorization, and anyone with an Employment Authorization Document.

Non-citizens without work authorization can only get an SSN if they need it for a specific non-work reason required by federal law or a state benefit — a narrow category, and the SSA will ask which law requires it.

If you are not eligible for an SSN but have a US tax obligation, apply for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number from the IRS instead. An ITIN lets you file taxes, and some banks and lenders accept it, but it confers no work authorization and no benefits.

This is the route most new arrivals do not know about and should use. Since the SSA and State Department began sharing data, you can request a Social Security number directly on the immigrant visa application or the green card application — Form DS-230 or DS-260 for immigrant visas, Form I-765 for an Employment Authorization Document.

If you check the box, no separate SSA visit is required. The card is mailed to the US address you provided, usually within a few weeks of arrival, and there is no need to queue at a field office.

This applies to most immigrant visa holders and to many people applying for work authorization. It does not apply to most non-immigrant visa categories, where a separate application is still needed.

If you did not check the box, or your category does not allow it, you apply in person as below.

Complete Form SS-5, available free from ssa.gov, and take it to a Social Security office. Some offices now accept appointments and some take walk-ins; check ssa.gov for the office serving your ZIP code and its current arrangements.

Bring original documents or certified copies — the SSA does not accept photocopies or notarized copies. You need to prove three things: identity, age, and immigration status or citizenship.

For a US citizen: a US birth certificate or US passport, plus a driver's license, state ID or passport for identity.

For a non-citizen: your unexpired foreign passport with the visa, your I-94 arrival record (available online from the CBP website), and your Employment Authorization Document or green card if you have one. Students should also bring the I-20; exchange visitors the DS-2019, usually with a letter from the sponsor.

The SSA sights your documents and returns them. The card arrives by mail, typically within two to four weeks, though verification of immigration records can extend that.

You do not need to bring a job offer, though F-1 students applying on the basis of on-campus employment will need evidence of the job and a letter from the school.

You can legally start work before the card arrives, provided you are authorized to work. An employer must complete Form I-9 within three days of your start date to verify work authorization, but the I-9 does not require an SSN — the employer can record that it has been applied for.

Tell the employer the number as soon as it arrives so payroll and tax withholding are correct. Without it, W-2 reporting and tax filing become difficult.

Protect it seriously. Unlike a driver's license number, an SSN generally cannot be changed. The SSA will issue a new number only in narrow circumstances including ongoing harassment, abuse, life endangerment, or documented sequential misuse causing significant continuing harm — and even then, the old number remains linked to the new one.

Give it only to employers, financial institutions, the IRS, the SSA, insurers, and where a specific law requires it. A landlord or a medical provider asking for it can usually be given the last four digits or an alternative — asking is normal and often works.

The SSA does not call to threaten arrest, suspend your number, or demand payment. Numbers are never suspended. Any such call is fraudulent; hang up and report it to the SSA Office of the Inspector General.

Do not carry the card. Keep it somewhere secure and memorize the number.