An SSA authorized representative is a person you name in writing to handle your Social Security claim: an attorney or qualified non-attorney who can review your file, submit evidence, and speak for you at hearings from the initial application through the final appeal. Appointing one costs nothing to set up, but any fee the representative eventually charges has to be approved by Social Security before it can be collected.
Who Can Be Your Representative
You can choose either an attorney or a non-attorney. An attorney qualifies as long as they are licensed to practice before any state, territorial, or federal court, are not currently suspended or disqualified from practicing before Social Security, and are not otherwise barred by law from serving.1eCFR. 20 CFR 404.1705 – Who May Be Your Representative
Non-attorneys can serve too. They must be capable of giving you meaningful help with your claim, have good character and reputation, and not be under suspension, disqualification, or a legal bar.2eCFR. 20 CFR 416.1505 – Who May Be Your Representative That opens the role to family members, friends, social workers, and professional disability advocates. The regulations flag felony convictions and convictions for crimes involving dishonesty or fraud as potentially disqualifying under the good-character requirement.
Anyone disbarred or suspended from a court or bar for misconduct, or disqualified from appearing before any federal program, is automatically ineligible. Purely administrative suspensions, such as unpaid bar dues or missed continuing education credits, do not trigger disqualification unless the action was taken in place of a formal disciplinary proceeding.3Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 416.1570 – Decision by Hearing Officer
Every representative, attorney or not, has to register with Social Security and obtain a Representative Identification number (Rep ID) before the agency will process an appointment. Registration is done on Form SSA-1699, faxed to the Office of Central Operations, and the Rep ID typically arrives by mail in two to three weeks.4Social Security Administration. Form SSA-1699 – Representative Registration
What the Representative Can and Cannot Do
Once Social Security recognizes the appointment, the representative can obtain information about your pending claim, examine your file, submit evidence and written statements, receive copies of all decisions and notices, appear at hearings and interviews with you or on your behalf, and make arguments about the facts and the law.5eCFR. 20 CFR 404.1710 – Authority of a Representative
Certain acts stay with you. A representative cannot sign an application for benefits for you, testify in your place at a hearing, change your personal information such as mailing address or bank account, or transfer their duties to someone you haven’t formally appointed.6Social Security Administration. GN 03910.025 – Authority of Appointed Representatives and Duties If an adjudicator needs testimony about your symptoms or daily activities, that has to come from you.
Filing the Appointment
Form SSA-1696
Form SSA-1696, “Appointment of Representative,” is what makes the relationship official. You supply your full legal name and Social Security number; the representative supplies their name, Rep ID, mailing address, and phone number.7Social Security Administration. Form SSA-1696 – Appointment of Representative The form asks you to indicate whether the appointment covers a new claim, a reconsideration, or a hearing, and both of you must sign and date it.
Social Security accepts electronic signatures made through commercial e-signature products, but the product has to meet specific technical requirements. The signer’s name must appear in the signature area, and the product must stamp the date and time of signing. If the date and time do not appear directly in the signature field, a separate signature certificate page must be attached to each form. Whoever submits the form has to retain the audit trail and digital certificate for at least three years.8Social Security Administration. Commercial Product Alternative Signature Process for Certain Forms and Writings
You can download the form from Social Security’s website or pick it up at any field office. Many professional representatives upload the completed form through the agency’s secure online portal, which gives an immediate confirmation.
Where to Send It
Where you file depends on the stage of your claim. For initial applications and reconsiderations, send it to your local field office. If your case is at the hearing level, send it to the Office of Hearing Operations handling the case. If you have requested review of a hearing decision, file it with the Office of Appellate Operations. After a court remand, submit it to whichever of those offices is handling the case at that point.9Social Security Administration. GN 03910.040 – Appointment of a Representative
Keep copies of the signed form and any mailing or fax receipts. Social Security’s own guidance suggests waiting 30 days before following up on the status of an appointment.10Social Security Administration. Tips and Best Practices for Appointed Representatives
Appointing More Than One
You can appoint more than one representative, but you have to designate one as your principal representative. Social Security sends notices and development requests only to that person, who then shares them with anyone else on your team. If you don’t designate one, the agency will try to contact you; if that fails, it will temporarily treat your most recently appointed representative as the principal and ask you to make a formal choice.9Social Security Administration. GN 03910.040 – Appointment of a Representative
What a Representative Can Charge
Fee Agreements
Most representatives use a fee agreement, a written arrangement signed by both of you before the agency issues its first favorable decision. Under an approved agreement, the fee cannot exceed the lesser of 25% of your past-due benefits or $9,200.11Social Security Administration. Fee Agreements The $9,200 cap took effect for favorable decisions issued on or after November 30, 2024, and Social Security adjusts it periodically for inflation.
No representative can charge or collect a fee without Social Security’s authorization. Once the agency approves an agreement, that amount is the maximum the representative can charge for all services on your claim.12eCFR. 20 CFR 404.1720 – Fee for a Representative’s Services For attorneys and eligible non-attorney representatives, Social Security withholds the approved fee from your past-due benefits and pays the representative, so you don’t write a check yourself.
Fee Petitions
If no fee agreement was filed before the favorable decision, or the agency didn’t approve the one that was filed, the representative has to use the fee petition process. That petition itemizes each service, the time spent, and the total requested, and the agency then decides whether the amount is reasonable given the work and the outcome.13eCFR. 20 CFR Part 404 Subpart R – Representation of Parties The two processes are not interchangeable: once a favorable decision issues, a representative who used the fee agreement route can’t switch to a fee petition just because the agreement produced a lower amount.11Social Security Administration. Fee Agreements
Expenses Are Separate
The approved fee does not cover out-of-pocket costs like obtaining medical or hospital records. Those are a separate matter between you and your representative, and Social Security takes no role in disputes over them.14Social Security Administration. NL 00720.050 – ATY Representative Fee Ask upfront whether the representative expects reimbursement for records, postage, or travel, and get the answer in writing before work begins.
Direct Payment for Non-Attorneys
Attorneys are automatically eligible to have fees paid directly from your past-due benefits. Non-attorneys are not, unless they hold “eligible” status through Social Security’s certification program, which requires passing an examination and background investigation, carrying professional liability insurance, meeting education or experience requirements, and completing annual continuing education including at least one ethics course.15Social Security Administration. Direct Payment to Eligible Non-Attorney Representatives
This matters to you as the claimant. If your non-attorney representative is not eligible for direct payment, Social Security will not withhold the fee and send it to them. You would have to pay the representative yourself after the fee is authorized, which is worth sorting out before you sign the appointment form.
Conduct Rules That Protect You
Representatives operate under a detailed code of conduct. Core duties include gathering and submitting evidence promptly, helping you respond to agency requests, communicating with you about the status of your case, and being prepared and competent enough to handle the issues in your claim.16Social Security Administration. Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Representatives
A few obligations are worth knowing. Representatives must disclose in writing if their employee or contractor drafted a medical or vocational opinion submitted in your case, or if they referred you to the provider who wrote it. They must immediately report to the agency if they discover you’re using their services to commit fraud. And once a hearing has been scheduled, they generally cannot withdraw from your case except in extraordinary circumstances, because a last-minute exit can derail the claim.16Social Security Administration. Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Representatives
Violating these standards can result in suspension or permanent disqualification from representing anyone before Social Security, and the agency can refer cases to the Office of the Inspector General for criminal investigation. Representatives who collect fees above the authorized amount face mandatory disqualification.17Social Security Administration. Rules and Standards Governing the Conduct of Representatives
Ending the Relationship
You can revoke the appointment at any time by notifying Social Security in writing. The simplest way is Form SSA-1696-SUP1, which asks for your Social Security number, the representative’s name and Rep ID, and your signature. You can hand it in at a field office, mail it, or fax it. The revocation takes effect on the date Social Security receives the signed document.18Social Security Administration. Form SSA-1696-SUP1 – Claimant’s Revocation of the Appointment of a Representative
If you revoke your principal representative and still have others appointed, you have to name a new principal on the form. Revocation also does not automatically wipe out the former representative’s right to a fee for work already completed. If a fee agreement was in place and at least one appointed representative is still active on the claim, that agreement remains valid.11Social Security Administration. Fee Agreements
A representative can also withdraw on their own, but not at a time or in a manner that disrupts your claim. Once a hearing is scheduled, withdrawal is generally prohibited unless extraordinary circumstances require it, and the representative must give you enough time to find a replacement.16Social Security Administration. Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Representatives