There will be a big change for people in the United States who get Social Security. Beneficiaries who sign up for the first time or need to make a change will have to prove who they are in person at government offices starting in April in order to keep getting monthly payments. The Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) came up with this new rule to improve oversight of government spending and cut down on fraud in the Social Security system.
People are already worried about the change, especially older people and people who live in rural places who may have trouble getting to government offices. The new rule replaces the old system that let people prove their identity through the official Social Security website. It applies to both new applicants and present beneficiaries. People who don’t do this step could lose their benefits because accounts that haven’t been confirmed may be marked as inactive or fake.
In April, identity checks will begin in person
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is run by Donald Trump and Elon Musk, is implementing this policy after hearing that the Social Security Administration (SSA) was sending payments in the names of people who had died. The new process is meant to stop these kinds of mistakes and make it easier to keep track of public funds.
Identity checks done online through the SSA website will no longer be allowed after April. No matter when they signed up for the program, all participants must go to a local SSA office and prove who they are in person.
If you don’t go through this verification process, your monthly payments could be stopped or put on hold because the system will see accounts that can’t be verified as suspicious or dormant.
Seniors and people who live in rural areas may have problems
An advocacy group and a community leader are very worried about the new policy because they say it could affect thousands of vulnerable recipients. This includes seniors who live in remote or underserved areas and may have trouble getting to SSA offices.
More than 7,000 SSA workers were recently let go, which makes the problem even worse. This could mean even more delays and long wait times for people trying to follow the new rule.
The government says the measure is needed to make things more clear and cut down on waste, but many Americans are now uncertain because they have to go through an in-person verification process that some people may find hard or even impossible to do in order to keep their Social Security benefits.
