Enrichment · Life Skills

Replace the card
with the right papers, once.

Answer four questions about whose card it is and why you need a new one, and the checklist tells you whether the online request fits or you need Form SS-5, which original documents to gather, and how many replacements you have left.

Add a requestWhat you get

Card requests

The worked example is made up: a lost card replaced online, and a name change after marriage that was started online but needs Form SS-5. Records save on this device only.

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What you get

Enrichment · Life SkillsFree

What you finish with
A record per card request with whose card, why, citizenship, route, replacements already used and the date requested; six document steps and three after the card arrives; replacements left this year and in a lifetime; flags for a route that does not fit, a stolen card, the limits, photocopied documents and whether you need the card at all.
Who it is for
Adults replacing their own card, parents replacing a child’s, people changing their name, and the teachers, counselors and caseworkers who help them.
Format
Browser checklist with a saved record per request. Prints a document list to bring to the office, every request or a blank checklist; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Life Skills space in Caveat Enrichment.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Ask whether you need the card: most employers and banks only need the number.
  2. Answer the four questions; the checklist shows which route fits.
  3. Gather originals or certified copies, not photocopies.
  4. Apply online, at an office or by mail; replacement cards are free.
  5. When the card comes, sign it and keep it at home.

Add a request

Online, office or mail

Which way to applyAdult U.S. citizen, same name,U.S. mailing address?Online, with a my SocialSecurity accountChanging your name, or applyingfor a child?Form SS-5 at an office or bymailNot a U.S. citizen?Form SS-5 with currentimmigration documentsEither way: free, and the card comes by mail.Which way to applyAdult U.S. citizen, same name, U.S.mailing address?Online, with a my Social SecurityaccountChanging your name, or applying for achild?Form SS-5 at an office or by mailNot a U.S. citizen?Form SS-5 with current immigrationdocumentsEither way: free, and the card comes by mail.
The online service also depends on your state and on having a driver’s license or state ID; ssa.gov checks this when you start.

The limits

Social Security issues no more than three replacement cards a year and ten in a lifetime. Changes such as a legal name change do not count toward those limits, and there are exceptions when a card is needed for a compelling reason. A replacement card has the same number as the old one.

If the card was stolen

Someone with your number can try to open accounts or file a tax return in your name. Report it at IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan, consider a free credit freeze at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, and watch for letters about accounts you did not open. A new number is issued only in rare cases of ongoing misuse.

Sources

  1. Social Security Administration. Replace Social Security card: online requests, Form SS-5 and required documents (ssa.gov).
  2. Social Security Administration. Your Social Security Number and Card (publication 05-10002): limits of three a year and ten in a lifetime (ssa.gov).
  3. Social Security Administration. Learn what documents you will need to get a Social Security card: originals or certified copies only (ssa.gov).
  4. Federal Trade Commission. IdentityTheft.gov: reporting and recovery steps, credit freezes (identitytheft.gov).

The worked example is made up. Rules for the online request depend on your state and your documents; ssa.gov checks them when you start. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat; never type the full Social Security number here. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.