¿Reconoce la Seguridad Social un poder notarial?

Las prestaciones de la Seguridad Social y de la Seguridad de Ingreso Suplementario (SSI) son increíblemente importantes para muchas personas mayores y personas con necesidades especiales. Cualquier tipo de interrupción de estas prestaciones puede ser devastadora.

In order to avoid disruption or mitigate any issues regarding these federal payments, it is important to make sure that someone trustworthy is able to manage and negotiate the payments. If a Social Security or SSI recipient is a legally incompetent adult, the law requires that a Representative Payee be appointed. The Representative Payee’s duties are to manage the federal payments.

In addition, they must use the benefits to pay for the current and future needs of the recipient. Furthermore, they must properly save any benefits not needed to meet current needs.

Oftentimes, the unfortunate scenario occurs where an adult receives Social Security or SSI benefits and then suffers an ailment that causes them to become a legally incompetent adult. In this case, it is necessary for a Representative Payee to be appointed.

The Social Security Administration presumes that an adult is capable of managing his or her own benefits. However, if it appears that this may not be true, the administration gathers evidence to decide if there is a need to appoint a Representative Payee.

In some cases, the recipient will already have executed a Durable Power of Attorney with a trusted individual acting as his/her agent. However, the United States Treasury Department does not recognize a power of attorney for negotiating federal payments, including Social Security or SSI.

This means, even if you are the agent under a Durable Power of Attorney for someone who is incapable of managing his or her own benefits, you must still apply to serve as his or her payee.

También es importante tener en cuenta que ser un representante autorizado y/o tener una cuenta bancaria conjunta con el beneficiario no es lo mismo que ser un representante beneficiario. Estos acuerdos no otorgan autoridad legal para negociar y gestionar las prestaciones de la Seguridad Social y/o SSI de un beneficiario.

If your loved one needs Representative Payee to be appointed, then you should contact the Social Security office nearest to you for more information. You will likely need to complete form SSA-11 (Request to be selected as payee). Additionally, you must provide the requisite documentation, and have a face-to-face meeting with a representative of the SSA.

Aunque el Departamento del Tesoro de EE.UU. no reconoce un poder notarial duradero, sigue siendo un documento legal increíblemente importante que debe ser ejecutado por todos los adultos.

If you would like to speak with an experienced elder law attorney regarding your situation or have questions about something you have read, please do not hesitate to contact our office at 1 (800) 680-1717. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you.

Disclaimer: The information provided above is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice.