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Replacing or Reissuing a Paper EE Bond

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Replacing or reissuing?

Replacing:  If your paper bond is lost, stolen, destroyed, mutilated, or you never received it, you can request a substitute electronic savings bond.

Reissuing: If you want to change who is named on the bond , or if there is a major error in the names, see: Reissuing Paper EE Bonds.

Note:  Bonds that we replace or reissue will no longer be issued in paper form but, instead, will be issued as electronic bonds in TreasuryDirect. Instead of replacing the bond electronically, you can ask for your bond to be cashed.

Replacing Paper EE Bonds

If your paper EE bond is lost, stolen, or destroyed, we need the following information before searching for the record of your bond:

  • Bond serial number -- If you don’t have the bond serial number, provide all of the following:
    • Specific month and year of purchase
    • Social Security Number
    • Names, including middle names or initials
    • Mailing address

To request a substitute electronic bond in a TreasuryDirect account:

  1. Fill out and sign FS Form 1048 (download or order)
  2. Take the filled-out form to your financial institution to sign and have your signature certified according to the instructions on the form.
  3. Mail the completed form to:

    Treasury Retail Securities Site
    PO Box 214
    Minneapolis, MN 55480-0214

    Note: Once you receive your bonds in a TreasuryDirect account or payment for lost bonds, the original paper bonds are no longer yours. They belong to the U.S. government. If you later find the original bonds, please return them to the Treasury Retail Securities Site at the address above.

Reissuing Paper EE Bonds

Reissue will not be made if the request for reissue is received less than one full calendar month before the final maturity date of a bond.  An EE bond's final maturity date is 30 years after the issue date.  In addition, reissue will not be made unless the new registration(s) requested is authorized by the governing regulations (31 CFR part 363).

What changes do NOT require reissuing the bond?

We do not reissue bonds for these changes:

Situation What to do
Name change because you got married No reissue needed. When you cash in the bond, sign both your name
that is on the bond and your married name.
Minor typo in your name No reissue needed. When you cash in the bond, sign your correct name.
Address change No reissue needed.
Wrong Social Security Number No reissue needed, See: Correcting a Social Security Number on a Bond

Note: If you are thinking about changing who owns the bond and want to find out what changes are permitted and how those changes can be accomplished, call 844-284-2676 (toll free) or write to Treasury Retail Securities Site, PO Box 214, Minneapolis, MN 55480-0214.

What must I do?

The following sections tell you what to do for each situation that requires reissuing a bond.

To correct a major error
For a major error, such as
  • the first or last name of an owner is missing
  • a name is misspelled with more than a minor typo
For a court appointment
A court has appointed a guardian, conservator, or similar representative for the estate of a living owner. This may happen for
  • a minor (child)
  • a person who cannot handle his or her own finances due to age or illness
  • an absentee
  • Everyone named in the registration on the bond has died and a court has appointed an executor or similar legal representative for the estate of the person named in the bond's registration who died last (see "Death of a Savings Bond Owner")
When you change who owns the bond
The owner has died (or both persons named on a bond have died)
You want the new owner to be a personal trust estate
You want to, for example,

  • add another person
  • change the name of an owner because of marriage annulment, divorce, or court order. Note: Change for a new married name is not required.
  • name a new owner instead of a current living owner
When you change the beneficiary
You want to, for example,

  • add a beneficiary when a bond is in the name of one living owner.
  • remove a living beneficiary
  • change the name of a beneficiary because of marriage annulment, divorce, or court order. Note: Change for a new married name is not required.
Who must approve a change?
Situation Who must sign
Two living people are named on the bond and both of them want to request a change that is permitted. (If you are not sure if the change you want is permitted, check the instructions on FS Form 4000, call 844-284-2676 [toll free], or write to Treasury Retail Securities Site, PO Box 214, Minneapolis, MN 55480-0214). Both must sign the form
Two people are named on the bond, but only one needs to make a change such as changing his or her own name Only the owner making the change about himself or herself must sign the form
The owner wants to change the beneficiary The owner may make this change. The beneficiary does not have to agree to the change.

Must I pay federal income taxes when Treasury reissues a bond?

Sometimes.

Consider this situation: You were the owner on the old bond. You are not named on the reissued bond. In that case, you are responsible for reporting on your federal income tax return interest earned during the time you were named on the bond.

We provide an IRS Form 1099-INT.

Electronic bonds Log in to TreasuryDirect and go to ManageDirect. From the Manage Direct page, select the year under “Manage My Taxes” and then select 1099.
Paper bonds Form 1099-INT is mailed to you after the end of the calendar year in which the bond was reissued.

Tax Considerations for EE Bonds