Social Security Number Verification Service (SSNVS) Handbook

USING SSNVS

SSNVS allows you to submit names and Social Security Numbers (SSNs) for verification both online and through electronic file submission.

REQUEST ONLINE SSN VERIFICATION

The SSN Verification web page enables you to submit up to 10 names and SSNs for verification and obtain immediate results. There is no limit to the number of times the SSN Verification web page may be used within a session.

The SSN Verification web page contains the following data entry fields:

Employer Identification Number (EIN) - The EIN of the employer under which wages are to be reported for the names and SSNs being verified.

• The Employer's EIN field is mandatory.
• The Employer's EIN must be nine (9) numerical characters only.
• Spaces, alphabetic characters, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

Social Security Number (SSN)

• The SSN field is mandatory.
• The SSN must be nine (9) numerical characters only.
• Spaces, alphabetic characters, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

First Name

• The First Name field is mandatory.
• The First Name must be between one (1) and 10 characters in length.
• If the First Name is longer than 10 characters, enter the first 10 characters of the First Name.
• Enter the First Name using alphabetic characters only.
• Spaces, numbers, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

Middle Name

• The Middle Name field is optional.
• If entered, the Middle Name must be between one (1) and seven (7) characters in length.
• If the Middle Name is longer than seven (7) characters, enter the first seven (7) characters of the Middle Name.
• Enter the Middle Name using alphabetic characters only.
• Spaces, numbers, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

Last Name

• The Last Name field is mandatory.
• The Last Name must be between one (1) and 13 characters in length.
• If the Last Name is longer than 13 characters, enter the first 13 characters of the Last Name.
• Enter the Last Name using alphabetic characters only.
• Spaces, numbers, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

Suffix

• The Suffix field is optional.
• If entered, the Suffix must be Jr, Sr, or a Roman Numeral I through X.
• Numbers, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.

Date of Birth (DOB)

• The DOB field is optional.
• If entered, the DOB must contain eight (8) digits.
• Enter the employee's DOB using the format MMDDYYYY where:
  • MM is the month; enter a value of 01 through 12.
  • DD is the day; enter a value of 01 through 31.
  • YYYY is the year; enter the first two (2) digits of the century followed by a value of 00 through 99.
• Spaces, letters, hyphens, slashes or any other special characters are not allowed.
• The DOB cannot be before 1800 or after the current date.

Gender

• The Gender field is optional.
• F = Female
• M = Male

The First, Middle and Last Name fields provide links to the help guide for entering complex names. To access the SSNVS Help web page, you must be logged into SSNVS. The Help button is in the left-hand corner of each SSNVS web page and opens in a new browser window.

UPLOAD AN ELECTRONIC FILE FOR VERIFICATION

SSNVS allows you to request name and SSN verifications via electronic file submissions.

1. The Submit a File for SSN Verification - Before You Start web page contains the following information.

• Review your file for correct formatting to ensure that the file is error-free. A properly formatted file will avoid rejection. See the Submission File Format section of the handbook for the correct file format. Files containing more than 100 records are scanned for format errors. If more than 50% of the records contain format errors, the file is not processed.

• Excel Users

  To ensure that your electronic file submission processes successfully, the file must NOT be in an *.xls format. If you are using Excel, you must save the file in the appropriate format.

  To properly save an Excel file for processing:

  1. On the File Menu, select Save As.
  2. In the Save As dialog box, select the drop-down box Save as type.
  3. Select Formatted text (Space delimited) (*.prn).
  4. Insert your filename and click Save.

Once you have saved your file, check your file against the Submission File Format. Please ensure that the record length is 130 characters and all fields are properly placed in their respective positions.

• Zip your file if you have over 500 name and SSN verification requests or you have a slow connection. The transmission time required will be substantially reduced if the file is zipped (compressed).

When the file is ready for upload, select the Continue button.

2. The Submit a File for SSN Verification - Submit Your File web page contains the following data entry fields.

• Employer's EIN

The EIN of the employer under which wages are to be reported for the names and SSNs being verified.

• Select File

• If you know the name of the file you wish to upload, type the file name in the Select File data entry field.

or

• Select a file from your local or network directory by selecting the Browse button. When the file submission box appears, select the location and name of the file you want to upload. When you select OK and return to Submit a File for SSN Verification - Submit Your File web page, the file name is automatically entered in the Select File data entry field.

• Once the Select File data entry field is complete, select the Submit button to begin uploading your file. Your file submission is complete when the Submit a File for SSN Verification - Confirmation web page is displayed.

• After the Submit button has been selected, you will see a dialog box showing the process of your file being uploaded. When the file upload is complete, you will receive a pop-up box stating "Your file submission was successful" and a recommendation to save or print the acknowledgement.

Submission times depend on many factors. SSA allows up to four (4) hours for a single file submission. If your connection is lost during file submission, you will have to submit the file again.

NOTE: Please do not exit SSNVS or log out until you receive your confirmation number.




3. The Submit a File for SSN Verification - Confirmation web page contains the following information.

This web page acknowledges that your file was received and provides other submitted related information.

• Confirmation number, a 16-position alphanumeric number, assigned by SSA, that you will need to retrieve the results of your submission. Make a note of this number; you need it to check the status of your file.

• Date of submission,
• Time of submission,
• Your file name (For information only, not to be used for tracking the status of your file.),

• File size,
• What you should do next and
• What to expect.

Once a file is successfully submitted and you have noted its confirmation number, you can process more files by selecting the Submit Another File button; this returns you to the Submit a File for SSN Verification - Submit Your File web page.