Correcting birthdate on SSA file for naturalized USC

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Asking for a client rather than myself. Here's the situation as I know it:

• Client is a naturalized USA citizen, born in Iran. Naturalization was in 1999.
• Client was recently booted off her health insurance -- she is now eligible for Medicare because she turned 65 in July of this year, and that terminated her coverage.
• Client needs to have two surgeries which, while elective, she really should have. 
• Client tried to sign up for Medicare but was told she is not yet eligible, because the Social Security Administration has her birthdate down as February 1958 (!).
• Client goes in-person to local SSA with the following original documents, all of which show the identical July 1957 birthdate:
  • Certificate of naturalization
  • US Passport
  • Current driver's license
• She also brings her SS card and a copy of her most recent CA state tax return, the latter of which shows her July 1957 birthdate. 
• SSA was predictably useless and told her none of these documents are acceptable to substantiate her date of birth. They want to see her Iranian birth certificate, which she does not have. 
• Client protests and asks to speak with a manager; worker she is dealing with says he (the worker) will speak with the manager for her. Comes back and says manager agrees. Manger does not come out.
• Client is my boss's first cousin, so even though this is totally outside of my wheelhouse (I do commercial property law), I gotta do it. 

 

My first impression here is that this is all BS. If the person is presenting both a Certificate of Naturalization AND a passport, surely this is enough to substantiate the date of birth. What does a birth certificate from Iran say that is more convincing to the SSA than what USCIS and DHS have to say about her true date of birth? Now, the client can get the BC, but she says it is likely that it will take longer to do that than wait until February of next year. Beyond that, she will have to wait for these surgeries. I believe she could get cover in the interim on the private market, but she shouldn't pay over the odds for something that is the SSA's mistake.

 

Anyway, here's the question -- is this just a matter of trying a different office and seeing if that works? Does anyone have a link to something on the SSA website showing what documentation is acceptable to prove date of birth? I have started my own research on this but if anyone has insight, I'd be grateful so she can wave it in a worker's face if necessary. I'm putting a call in to the number provided by the SSA for these questions but any additional insight is useful. Thanks in advance for any help.

[Lil bear 4,263]

Was the Iranian birth certificate presented for initial immigration then naturalization ? 
 

instructions on the SSA website for applying for /changing info states that generally Birth certificate s required for proof of age but under certain circumstances ( undefined) other documentation such as passport will be accepted. 
 

it will be an uphill battle for sure 
 

https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ss-5.pdf

Edited August 3, 2022 by Lil bear

[Chancy 6,243]

On 8/3/2022 at 1:38 PM, elmcitymaven said:

Does anyone have a link to something on the SSA website showing what documentation is acceptable to prove date of birth?

 

https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110210265 -- Kinds of Documents that Establish Age for an SSN Card

https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110210295 -- Date of Birth Change on the Numident

https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0200302010 -- Evidence of Established Age in SSA Records

 

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Thanks guys. This is very useful info. I'm still waiting on her to send back my appointment as her representative, so when I chase I'll ask about what was presented at the time of naturalization. It was quite a long time ago, though.

 

It looks like she has two level 3 documents and three level 4 documents. We'll see where I get. She entered the US back in the pre-revolutionary Iran era, so we are talking a LONG time that this has been an error. In fact, while we were nosing around we found out my boss also has the wrong birthdate on his SSA record, so after I fix it for his cousin he's next up. 

 

I'll report back -- this may eventually be useful for someone else caught in a similar bind. And for everyone else -- check your SSA file and make sure yours is correct. You don't want to end up finding out there's an error in a time of crisis.