To change your address with Social Security, sign in to your my Social Security account at ssa.gov and update it under My Profile, call 1-800-772-1213, or visit a local Social Security office. Online is the fastest route for most people, but if you receive Supplemental Security Income you can’t use it and will need to call or go in person instead.1Social Security Administration. How Can I Change My Address or Direct Deposit Information for My Social Security Benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Payments If you don’t receive Social Security benefits, SSI, or Medicare, you don’t need to tell the SSA at all.
Do You Actually Need to Tell the SSA
An address on file with the SSA matters for people currently receiving retirement, survivors, or disability benefits, those enrolled in Medicare, and SSI recipients.2Social Security Administration. Update Contact Information The agency uses it to send benefit statements, tax documents, and payment notices. Your Social Security number itself doesn’t carry an address the way a driver’s license does, so if you’ve never received benefits and aren’t on Medicare, skip this process entirely.1Social Security Administration. How Can I Change My Address or Direct Deposit Information for My Social Security Benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Payments
What to Have Ready
Before you start, gather your full name, Social Security number or claim number, current mailing address, and new mailing address.3U.S. Embassy and Consulate in Spain and Andorra. Reporting a New Address to Social Security You won’t need to prove your new address or upload documents. If your bank has also changed, keep the new routing and account numbers handy so you can update direct deposit in the same session.
Changing Your Address Online
Sign in to your personal my Social Security account at ssa.gov, open the My Profile tab, and go to the contact information section. Enter the new address and choose whether the change takes effect immediately or on a future date. That future-date option is useful if you know your move date but haven’t actually moved yet.1Social Security Administration. How Can I Change My Address or Direct Deposit Information for My Social Security Benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Payments
No account yet? You can create one on the SSA website. Setup takes about ten minutes and involves verifying your identity with security questions and a cell phone number or email for two-factor authentication.
The same My Profile screen lets you switch your direct deposit at the same time. Online updates for both address and direct deposit are available only to Social Security benefit recipients and Medicare enrollees. SSI recipients have to use the phone or a local office.1Social Security Administration. How Can I Change My Address or Direct Deposit Information for My Social Security Benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Payments
By Phone, Mail, or In Person
Call 1-800-772-1213 Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time. TTY users can call 1-800-325-0778.4Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security by Phone Hold times run longest early in the week and early in the month; afternoons later in the week are usually quicker.
You can also write to the SSA at 1100 West High Rise, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21235. Include your full name, Social Security number or claim number, old address, new address, and a daytime phone number.5Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security by Mail Mail is the slowest option.
To go in person, find your nearest office through the locator at ssa.gov/locator. Walk-ins are accepted, but an appointment saves time. Most offices are open 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on weekdays, and many close earlier on Wednesdays, so check hours before you go.
Special Rules for SSI Recipients
If you receive SSI, a move is more than a mailing update. It can change how much you receive, and the deadline for telling the SSA is strict.
The 10-Day Deadline
Report your new address no later than 10 days after the end of the month in which you moved. Miss that window and the SSA can dock your payment $25 to $100 each time you fail to report on time, and the penalty applies per occurrence.6Social Security Administration. Understanding Supplemental Security Income Reporting Responsibilities – 2025 Edition Call or visit a local office as soon as you’re settled.
How the New Living Situation Affects Your Payment
SSI amounts depend partly on who pays for your shelter. If you live in your own place and cover your own shelter costs, or you live with someone else and pay your fair share, you can receive up to the full federal SSI amount, which is $994 per month for an individual in 2026.7Social Security Administration. SSI Federal Payment Amounts for 20268Social Security Administration. SSI Spotlight on Living Arrangements
If someone else pays your shelter costs, the SSA can reduce your SSI by up to one-third of the federal benefit rate, roughly $331 per month in 2026.8Social Security Administration. SSI Spotlight on Living Arrangements Since September 2024, food no longer counts in this calculation, so someone buying you groceries or meals won’t reduce your payment on its own. Cash gifts and gift cards still count as unearned income.9Social Security Administration. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Living Arrangements If you’re moving in with a family member who plans to cover the rent, expect your SSI to drop.
Moving to Another State
Many states pay a supplement on top of the federal SSI amount. The size varies widely, and some states pay nothing extra. Moving from a state with a generous supplement to one with a smaller supplement, or none, can drop your total monthly check. Report the move promptly so the SSA can recalculate.
Moving Outside the United States
For Social Security purposes, you’re considered outside the United States once you’ve been physically outside the 50 states, Washington D.C., and U.S. territories for 30 or more consecutive days.10Social Security Administration. Supplement to Claim of Person Outside the United States – Form SSA-21
When you move abroad, the SSA will send you Form SSA-21, the Supplement to Claim of Person Outside the United States. Complete and return it so the agency can determine whether your benefits can continue overseas. If the SSA doesn’t receive the completed form within 60 days, benefits stop.11Social Security Administration (SSA). Domestic-To-Foreign Change of Address – SSA-21 Not in File
U.S. citizens can generally keep receiving Social Security in most countries, but payments to Cuba and North Korea are completely blocked. Payments to Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan are restricted unless you meet specific exceptions.12Social Security Administration. SSA Handbook 1848 Contact the SSA well in advance if you’re moving to one of those countries.
SSI is different. Payments stop entirely if you leave the United States for 30 consecutive days or more, no matter the destination, and you won’t be eligible again until you’ve been back in the U.S. for at least 30 days.
Don’t Forget Medicare
Updating your address with the SSA doesn’t adjust your Medicare coverage on its own. If you move outside your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan’s service area, a Special Enrollment Period lets you switch to a plan available at your new address, or move back to Original Medicare if your Advantage plan doesn’t serve the new area.13Medicare. Special Enrollment Periods
Timing decides how long that window lasts. Tell your plan before you move and the window opens the month before the move and runs for two full months after. Notify the plan after you’ve moved and the window starts on your move date and runs two months.13Medicare. Special Enrollment Periods Miss it and you’ll wait until the fall Annual Enrollment Period, paying premiums in the meantime for a plan whose doctors and pharmacies you can’t easily reach.
Confirming the Change Went Through
Online updates usually process within a few business days. Expect a confirmation letter at the new address, though delivery times vary. If several weeks pass with no SSA mail at the new address, call 1-800-772-1213 to check.4Social Security Administration. Contact Social Security by Phone
You can also verify the address on file by requesting a benefit verification letter through your my Social Security account or by calling the automated phone system and saying “proof of income.”14Social Security Administration. Get Benefit Verification Letter The letter shows your current address, benefit type, and payment amount, which also comes in handy for a lease or loan application.
One more thing worth knowing: changing your address with the SSA does not update the IRS, the Postal Service, your state DMV, or any other agency. Handle each one separately, and set up USPS mail forwarding at the same time as a safety net for anything that slips through.