Social Security Archives

SSA has always used a system of formal numerical codes to label its documents as they are being filed and housed within the agency. The numerical codes correspond to various topical categories. For example, the numerical code 058.1 refers to material related to the financing of the Social Security system. The presence of this code as a box label is thus an indicator that the subject of the material in the box involves financing issues.

This filing system is long and complex, and its usage has varied considerably over the years. In some periods, the filing system was used as titles on the records shipped to NARA. Sometimes, these codes are the only available descriptive content for a box of records. It can therefore be of vital importance to have a listing of the codes and their topical meanings.

Be aware, however, that the filing codes in use in the early years of the agency are not the same as those presently in use, and in fact, the coding scheme has changed more than once over the years. However, the following chart lists the codes in use in the early years at SSA. Unfortunately we cannot determine precisely when the coding scheme changed. However, these codes can still be useful indicators of topical content when no other information is available.