Understanding Supplemental Security Income Overpayments -- 2024 Edition

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OVERPAYMENTS


WHAT IS AN OVERPAYMENT?

An overpayment is when you receive more money for a month than the amount you should have been paid. The amount of your overpayment is the difference between the amount you received and the amount due.

WHAT CAN CAUSE AN OVERPAYMENT?

    small blue ballYour income is more than you estimated.

    small blue ballYour living situation changes.

    small blue ballYour marital status changes.

    small blue ballYou have more resources than the allowable limit.

    small blue ballYou are no longer disabled and continue to receive benefits.

    small blue ballYou do not report a change to us (on time or at all) as required.

    small blue ballWe incorrectly figure your benefits because of incorrect or incomplete information.

WHAT WILL WE DO IF THERE IS AN OVERPAYMENT?

We will send you a notice explaining the overpayment and asking for a full refund within 30 days.  If you are currently getting payments and you do not make a full refund, the notice will:

    small blue and black arrowpropose to withhold the overpayment at the rate of the lesser of 10 percent or the entire monthly payment; 

    small blue and black arrowstate the month the proposed withholding will start;

    small blue and black arrowfully explain your appeal rights and how you can appeal our overpayment decision;

    small blue and black arrowexplain how you can ask us to review and waive the overpayment, so you may not have to pay it back.

    WHAT CAN YOU DO IF YOU GET AN OVERPAYMENT NOTICE?

    If you were a minor child receiving Foster Care benefits, and the State was your representative payee at the time you were overpaid, let us know.

    If you believe you were not overpaid or the amount of the overpayment is incorrect, you may request a reconsideration.

    If you ask for an appeal within 60 days from the date you receive the notice, any payment we are currently making will continue until we make a determination.

    NOTE NOTE: For information on requesting a reconsideration, see Appeals Process.
    If you believe that you may have been overpaid, but feel that it was not your fault and you cannot afford to pay us back, you may ask for:  
    • A waiver of the overpayment.
    • And complete form SSA 632 (Request for Waiver of Overpayment Recovery).
    NOTE NOTE: You may not need to complete the SSA-632 if you think you are not at fault and your overpayment is $1,000 or less. Instead, please request a waiver by calling us at 1-800-772-1213. We may be able to process your request quickly over the phone.
    If necessary, we will help you. 

    You can ask for a waiver at any time.

    If we grant you a waiver, you will not have to repay all or part of the overpayment. Generally, for us to grant you a waiver, you must show that:

      small blue and black arrowYou were not at fault in causing the overpayment; and

      small blue and black arrowPaying us back would mean that you cannot afford to pay for housing, food, clothes, or medical expenses. You may have to submit proof of your income, as well as bills to show that all of your income is used for your monthly expenses and that it would be a hardship for you to repay; or

      small blue and black arrowYou believe paying us back would be unfair for some other reason.

    IF YOU ARE NOT SURE WHAT CAUSED THE OVERPAYMENT, YOU MAY ASK FOR A RECONSIDERATION, A WAIVER, OR BOTH.

    You may ask to see your file to see the information we used in figuring the overpayment. You may have us explain the reason for the overpayment while you are examining your file.

    WHAT IF THERE WAS AN OVERPAYMENT AND WE DO NOT GRANT YOUR REQUEST FOR A WAIVER?

    You can request a reconsideration of Social Security’s denial of your request for waiver.  If we continue to deny your waiver request upon reconsideration, you may appeal the determination by requesting a hearing (see Appeals Process).  If the agency ultimately denies your waiver request, it is likely that you will have to pay back the overpayment or have it withheld from your monthly benefits.

    You can submit form SSA-634 Request for Change in Repayment Rate to ask us to withhold less than the proposed amount each month, or you can arrange to make monthly payments if you no longer receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.

    If you no longer receive SSI, we may withhold your overpayment from a Federal Income Tax refund and/or from any future Social Security benefits you may receive. If you become eligible for SSI in the future, we will withhold your overpayment from future SSI payments.

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