Form SSA-1588 is a short questionnaire the Social Security Administration mails to young surviving spouses receiving mother’s or father’s benefits. It asks two things: whether you have remarried, and whether you still have an eligible child living with you. Answer both questions, sign the form, and mail it back in the prepaid envelope to SSA’s processing center in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The form itself gives you 30 days; SSA’s internal system waits 90 days before flagging you as a nonresponder.1Social Security Administration. Program Operations Manual System GN 02602.304 – Beneficiary Recontact Program
Why You Got This Form
Receiving Form SSA-1588 does not mean SSA suspects you of anything. It is a routine eligibility check sent to widows and widowers under 60 who collect mother’s or father’s benefits because they care for the deceased worker’s child. Two conditions keep those benefits flowing: you must remain unmarried (with one exception noted below), and you must have a child of the deceased worker who is under 16, or disabled, and entitled to benefits in your care.2Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.341 – When Mother’s and Father’s Benefits Begin and End The form confirms both are still true.
How to Answer the Two Questions
Address
Your current mailing address is pre-printed at the top. If you have moved, write the new address in the space provided and check the change-of-address box. SSA will use whatever address is on file for any follow-up notices, including any that affect your benefits.
Question 1: Have You Remarried?
If you have not remarried since you began receiving survivor benefits, answer “No” and move on. If you have remarried, answer “Yes” and fill in the month and year of the marriage, your new spouse’s name, whether your new spouse receives Social Security benefits, and their claim number.
This is the most consequential question on the form. Remarriage before age 60 generally ends your entitlement to mother’s or father’s benefits. The important exception: your benefits continue if you marry someone who is already receiving Social Security benefits, such as old-age, disability, or survivor benefits.2Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.341 – When Mother’s and Father’s Benefits Begin and End That is why the form asks about your new spouse’s benefits and claim number.
If a later marriage ended by death, divorce, or annulment, you may be able to have benefits reinstated on your prior deceased spouse’s record. Contact your local Social Security office to discuss that.3Social Security Administration. Social Security Handbook 406 – Effect of Remarriage – Widow(er)’s Benefits
Question 2: Is the Child Still in Your Care?
Answer “Yes” if you still have a child under 16, or a child who became disabled before age 22, living with you and receiving benefits on the deceased worker’s record. Answer “No” if the child has moved out, left your care, or turned 16 and is not disabled. When you answer “No,” enter the date the child stopped living with you. Once no qualifying child remains in your care, your mother’s or father’s benefits are subject to suspension.2Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.341 – When Mother’s and Father’s Benefits Begin and End
Signature
Sign and date the form and add a daytime phone number. The certification is a declaration under penalty of perjury, so review your answers before signing. A phone number lets SSA reach you if an answer is unclear, which can head off processing delays.
The form does not ask about your job, wages, pensions, workers’ compensation, foreign travel, or anyone else in your household beyond the child-in-care question.4Reginfo.gov. Beneficiary Recontact Report – SSA-1588-SM Two yes-or-no questions and a signature is the whole form.
Where to Send It
Use the prepaid envelope from the original mailing. It is addressed to:
WBDOC
PO Box 5888
Wilkes Barre, PA 18767-5888
The form is processed at SSA’s Wilkes-Barre Direct Operations Center, not at your local field office.5Social Security Administration. GN 02602.306 – Processing Completed Form SSA-1588-SM (Beneficiary Recontact Reports) and Handling Inquiries If you lost the return envelope, use the same address with your own postage.
There is no online submission option. WBDOC scans and processes the paper forms. If you cannot find your form and the deadline is close, call or visit your local Social Security office. The field office will not reissue the form, but a representative can take your answers directly and update your record through SSA’s internal system.5Social Security Administration. GN 02602.306 – Processing Completed Form SSA-1588-SM (Beneficiary Recontact Reports) and Handling Inquiries
Deadlines and What Happens If You Ignore It
The form says to return it within 30 days.4Reginfo.gov. Beneficiary Recontact Report – SSA-1588-SM SSA’s internal policy gives you 90 days before the system flags you as a nonresponder and triggers a follow-up.1Social Security Administration. Program Operations Manual System GN 02602.304 – Beneficiary Recontact Program Return it promptly and there is no reason to worry.
If you do nothing, an escalating automated sequence eventually ends your benefits:6Social Security Administration. GN 02602.308 – Processing Form SSA-1588-SM (Beneficiary Recontact Report) Nonresponders and RETAP Alerts
- Around day 90, SSA sends a follow-up notice marked “final request” with another 90-day deadline.
- At day 180, if you still haven’t responded, SSA suspends your benefits and sends a suspension notice.
- At day 240, if you haven’t returned the form or contacted SSA within 60 days of that suspension notice, SSA terminates your benefits.
The form warns in bold: “IF YOU DO NOT RETURN IT PROMPTLY, WE WILL STOP SENDING CHECKS TO YOU.”4Reginfo.gov. Beneficiary Recontact Report – SSA-1588-SM SSA treats a nonresponder as someone who may have remarried, and the termination is coded accordingly.
Getting Benefits Restored If They Already Stopped
If your benefits were suspended or terminated because you didn’t return the form, not because you actually remarried or lost a child in care, contact your local Social Security office. A representative will ask the same questions the form covers: whether you are married, the date of any marriage, and whether a qualifying child still lives with you.5Social Security Administration. GN 02602.306 – Processing Completed Form SSA-1588-SM (Beneficiary Recontact Reports) and Handling Inquiries
If your answers confirm you are still eligible, the field office will request reinstatement through SSA’s internal system. Benefits can be restored retroactively to the suspension date, so you should receive payment for the months you went without. The sooner you contact SSA, the simpler the process.
Appealing a Decision You Disagree With
If SSA adjusts or stops your benefits based on your answers and you believe the decision is wrong, you have 60 days from the date you receive the notice to request reconsideration. SSA assumes you receive the notice five days after it is mailed, so in practice you have 65 days from the date on the notice.7Social Security Administration. Understanding Supplemental Security Income Appeals Process
File Form SSA-561 (Request for Reconsideration) with your local Social Security office. You can also upload it through your my Social Security account or call SSA at 1-800-772-1213 to start the process by phone.8Social Security Administration. Request Reconsideration An SSA employee will review your case and issue a new decision.
Penalty for False Answers
The signature line is a declaration under penalty of perjury. Knowingly making a false statement to obtain Social Security payments, or concealing an event that affects your eligibility, is a federal crime under 42 U.S.C. § 408, punishable by a fine, up to five years in prison, or both.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 408 – Penalties for False Statements SSA can also impose administrative sanctions for false or misleading statements, and those can apply even without an intent to defraud when you withheld information you knew or should have known was relevant.10Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 416.1340 – Penalty for Making False or Misleading Statements or Withholding Information Answer honestly and mail the form back.