Social Security reclaimed deceased husband's final payment - seeking help with 1099 discrepancy

I'm so sorry for your loss. Yes, going to your local office in person is definitely your best option for this situation. SSA has a rule that benefits are not payable for the month of death, so they were correct to reclaim that payment, but the 1099 should absolutely NOT include money that was taken back. Bring the 1099, your husband's death certificate, bank statements showing the deposit and withdrawal, and your photo ID. They can issue a corrected 1099-SSA. Make sure to get there at least 30 minutes before they open to avoid a long wait.

same thing happened when my wife died!! they took back her last check but the 1099 showed it anyway. RIDICULOUS SYSTEM! i went to the local office and waited 4 HOURS only to be told i needed an appt. total waste of time!!!

This is a common issue with survivor benefits and SSA accounting systems. What's happening is that the benefit was initially processed for payment in February (hence appearing on the 1099), but then reclaimed under SSA's month-of-death rule (benefits aren't payable for the month the person dies). The system should automatically generate a corrected 1099-SSA, but this often takes 60-90 days. You definitely need to resolve this to avoid tax issues. I'd recommend both: 1) Schedule an in-person appointment at your local office using their online scheduler, AND 2) Call again but use Claimyr (claimyr.com) to avoid the endless hold times. They have a service that gets you through to an actual SSA representative, and they show how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Bring all documentation showing the payment was reclaimed - bank statements are key.

So sorry about your husband. When my mom died last year they did the same thing with her check. The 1099 problem fixed itself after about 2 months when they mailed a corrected version automatically.

The SSA's policy is that you are not entitled to a payment in the month of death, regardless of what day of the month the death occurred. But the 1099 issue is definitely a mistake that needs correction. As someone who dealt with this exact situation, I can tell you that the local office is hit or miss. Some are extremely helpful, others are overwhelmed. Either way, you NEED an appointment these days - very few offices accept walk-ins anymore, and those that do have extremely long waits. The fastest way to resolve this is to: 1. Call the main number (1-800-772-1213) and request an appointment. Yes, the waits are horrible, but once you get through you can schedule an in-person meeting. 2. Request a corrected 1099-SSA specifically. Be very clear this is what you need. 3. At your appointment, bring the death certificate, the incorrect 1099, and bank statements showing the withdrawal. As an alternative, my sister used a service called Claimyr when she had to deal with my dad's benefits after he passed. It got her through to SSA on the phone in about 10 minutes instead of hours of trying and failing. Might be worth looking at (claimyr.com) if you're as frustrated as I was with the phone system.

Dealing with this stuff after losing ur husband is so unfair!! The government should make this easier on grieving people!!!! I think its so wrong they take back the check for the whole month even if someone dies at the end!! My uncle passed on the 29th and they still took his full check back!!!

When I used the Claimyr service someone mentioned, I got through to SSA in about 15 minutes after trying for days on my own with no luck. The agent was able to put in a request for a corrected 1099-SSA right over the phone. They said it takes about 30 days to process, but that I could file my taxes with the corrected amount (they told me exactly what to report) and include a statement explaining the discrepancy. Saved me a trip to the office and hours of frustration. The video demo on their site shows exactly how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU

you should try calling right when they open at 8am, thats how i finally got thru

Just an update on the rules here since there seems to be some confusion: 1. Social Security benefits are not payable for the month of death, regardless of what day the person died. This is federal law. 2. The 1099-SSA (or SSA-1099) should only show benefits that were actually received and not reclaimed. If a payment was taken back, it should not appear on the form. 3. SSA can issue a corrected 1099-SSA, but you need to specifically request this correction. It won't always happen automatically. 4. The fastest resolution is usually through an in-person appointment at your local SSA office, bringing documentation of the reclaimed payment. 5. The survivor (spouse) may be eligible for a one-time death benefit of $255 and possibly ongoing survivor benefits, which is a separate issue from the reclaimed payment.