The Social Security Administration issued an update on May 15 about COVID-19 Economic Impact Payments (EIP) to certain groups of Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries. Beneficiaries who have their regular monthly payments managed for them by another person (called a representative payee) will begin receiving their EIPs from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in late May.
Special rules apply to beneficiaries living in the U.S. territories: American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In general, the tax authority in each territory, not the IRS, will pay the Economic Impact Payments to eligible residents based on information the IRS will provide to the territories. It is anticipated that beneficiaries in the territories could begin receiving these payments in early June.
“The Social Security Administration has been working with the IRS to provide the necessary information about Social Security and SSI beneficiaries in order to automate and expedite their Economic Impact Payments,” said Andrew Saul, commissioner of Social Security. “While millions of our beneficiaries have already received their EIPs from the IRS, we continue to work hard for those beneficiaries who are awaiting their payment from the IRS.”
For additional information about payments to beneficiaries with representative payees, refer to www.socialsecurity.gov/coronavirus/#reppayee.
For the territories, people should contact their local tax authority with questions about these payments. Please note their website may use the term “Economic Impact Payment” or “stimulus payment.”
The eligibility requirements and other information about the Economic Impact Payments can be found here: www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payment-information-center. In addition, please continue to visit the IRS at www.irs.gov/coronavirus for the latest information.
Social Security will continue to update the agency’s COVID-19 web page at www.socialsecurity.gov/coronavirus/ with additional information.
