Minors, people with disabilities, and older adults may need someone to help them with their social security money, like SSI or SSDI. When that is true, the Social Security Administration (SSA) may give you a “representative payee” or “payee” if they think you need help managing your money.

Your payee can be a person or an agency. If there is someone you want to be your payee, you should tell SSA.

A payee must help you use your social security money for your needs. Some examples include:

• Paying for rent and bills like water and power.
• Buying food.
• Buying things you need like shampoo, soap, and cleaning supplies.
• Paying for clothes.
• Paying medical and dental bills.
• After paying for basic needs, paying for fun things like going to a movie or giving you spending money.
• Helping you budget and save for things you want.

Important: A payee cannot charge you for helping with your social security money unless SSA says it’s okay. SSA will tell you if your payee can charge you money and how much.

No. A payee cannot control your other money unless you ask them to or if they are also your legal guardian or “power of attorney” for money. Your payee will still need to know about other money you get because they need to make sure SSA pays you the right amount.

You can disagree with SSA if you do not want the payee that SSA gave you or you don’t think you need one. To disagree you need to do something called an “appeal.” You have 60 days to appeal SSA’s decision. Go to your local SSA office or call SSA at 1-800-772-1213 for more information.

At any time, if you are not happy with your payee’s help, you can find a new payee. You can ask another person or agency to go to the local SSA office to apply to be your payee instead. You should pick someone you trust.

You have the right to get your own social security money unless SSA believes you are not able to manage your money. If you have a payee because you have a disability, to change to no payee, you must show SSA that you can now manage your money without help. You could give SSA:

1.  A note from your doctor saying that there has been a change in your condition and the doctor thinks you are able to manage your money.
2. An official copy of a court order saying that the court thinks that you can manage your money.
3. Other facts that show you can manage your money.

You should talk with your payee about the problem. If that would not be safe or the problems keep happening after talking with your payee, try the next two steps.

• You can call SSA to report problems at 1-800-772-1213. If you think your payee is stealing your money, you should call SSA’s Office of Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or complete the form at: http://www.ssa.gov/fraudreport/oig/public_fraud_reporting/form.htm.
• You can call Equip for Equality to ask us to “review” your payee by calling Lydia Sharp at 312-895-7302 or sending her an email at lydia@equipforequality.org. If we are able to do the review, we will see if your social security money is being used to meet your needs.