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Social Security for Permanent Residents and Foreign Nationals In 1935, Congress officially passed the National Social Security Act. Since its implementation, social security has undergone extensive modification, with Medicare and the Supplemental Security Income Program (SSI) added in the 60’s and 70’s, respectively. Today, the Social Security Program is an integral part of this country. Around 49 million Americans currently receive benefits. The purpose of social security is to provide assistance to the disabled, retired, elderly, and needy. Under each category, there are different requirements that must be met in order to qualify. Qualifications for Claiming Social Security To receive social security as a retiree, one must work for at least 10 years or obtain 40 credits. A single credit is given for a certain dollar amount earned. For instance, in 2009, a worker will earn one credit for every $1090 he/she makes; a maximum of 4 credits can be accrued each year. A worker only becomes eligible for retirement at a certain age, determined by date of birth. Right now, the retirement age is anywhere from 65 to 67; 65 for those born before 1937 and 67 for those born after 1960. Those born between 1943 and 1954 are eligible at age 66. All others not explicitly mentioned are eligible within increments of 2 months; in other words, if you were born in 1955, you would become eligible for full retirement benefits at age 66 and 2 months. When a worker decides to retire, the amount he/she is entitled to depends on how long he/she worked and how much money he/she made during that time. Those who experience a loss in the family can claim survivor benefits under certain conditions. Widows or widowers must reach full retirement age before qualifying for maximum benefits. However, if a widow or widower is taking care of a child under the age of 16, he or she can claim benefits at any time. The amount family members are entitled to all depends on the length the expired person worked and how much that person made in their lifetime. Disability is paid to those who are unable to work because of a physical or mental impairment. In order to collect disability, one must work for a certain amount of time in accordance with the age at which one became disabled. For instance, if you are 42 years of age, then you need to have worked for 5 years by the time you become disabled to receive benefits. In general, the same rules apply for family members of disabled beneficiaries as they do for surviving kin. In order to be eligible for any kind of social security, a person must either be a citizen or a permanent resident of the United States, a simple work permit will not suffice. To access the benefits above, one must have a social security card. Using your social security number, the government can track the amount of wages you earn and determine accordingly what you should receive. Permanent residents must work the same amount of time or receive the same number of credits as citizens to receive full retirement benefits. How Non-Citizens Can Obtain a Social Security Numbers For non-citizens permitted to work in the United States, obtaining a social security card is highly advisable. If you are not permitted to work nor have any intention of working upon your arrival in the U.S., then it is not necessary to obtain a social security card. Holders of working visas such as H-1, L-1, O, and P are eligible for social security cards. In addition to that, those who have visas that allow limited work like a J-1, F-1 (with condition of an employment letter) are also eligible for a social security card. There are certain visa classifications that do not qualify for social security cards such as H-4, F-2, TD derivative, B-1 or B-2 visitor visa, and F-1 visas that forbid taking up employment and receiving money from U.S. sources. If you are unsure, please check your visa classification. Non-citizens can apply for a social security card one of two ways, either by going to the social security office in person or submitting an application in your home country to the U.S. Department of State. To do this, fill out an application (Form SS-5-FS); directions will vary based on your residential status. In the event that your work or residential status changes, then you need to apply for a new social security card. Aside from social security, other benefits are not exclusive to card holders. For instance, if you are a non-citizen and do not have a card, you can still apply for a driver’s license, obtain health insurance, qualify for reduced lunch programs, subsidized housing, etc. How Benefits Change once Citizens and Permanent Residents Leave the United States Once a U.S. citizen or permanent U.S. resident leaves the country, then their social security benefits are subject to change. U.S. citizens abroad will still receive regular benefits as long as they are eligible for them. There are a couple of countries that the United States cannot send payments to like North Korea and Cuba, but will commence payment once that citizen relocates to another country. For permanent residents, only those who are citizens of select countries will continue to receive benefits as long as that resident lived/worked in the United States for at least 10 years or earned 40 credits. Some of these countries include but are not limited to China, India, Taiwan, etc. All others will stop receiving benefits 6 months after departure from the United States, excluding those who meet certain exceptions. Family members of permanent residents who lived and worked in the United States for at least 10 years and earned a minimum of 40 credits will also continue to receive benefits if they are citizens of select countries. For family members that leave the United States and survive the person whom benefits were based on, payments will continue so long as the family member(s) lived in the United States for at least five years. In order to determine if you or your family members qualify for continued benefits upon departing the United States, please refer to this page. Taxing your Social Security Benefits As a permanent resident, up to 85% of your benefits are subject to taxation. If you are not a permanent resident or citizen and work in the United States, your benefits will also be taxed. If you work for an employer, 6.2% of your earnings are withheld. Your employer will deposit the withholdings, along with a matching contribution of 6.2% to the government for social security programs. In 2009, once your earnings reach $106,800, the employee tax and employer matching contribution stop. In addition, 1.45% of your earnings are withheld for Medicare. Your employer will match this amount with a 1.45% contribution; all of your earnings are subject to Medicare tax, regardless of how much you make. If you are self-employed, you pay 12.4% of your taxable income to social security until your earnings reach $106,800. You also pay 2.9% of your taxable income to Medicare on all of your earnings. If you leave the U. S. in the future, you may be reimbursed for all of your paid social security taxes and Medicare taxes by following certain procedures. However, bear in mind, that there are also exceptions to social security taxation; certain foreign countries do not tax benefits earned through work in the United States or charge a reduced rate. For example, Indian nationals do not have to pay this tax so long as they receive benefits based on their work with the U.S. government at a local, state, or national level. ------ To express our heartfelt appreciation to our clients, Zhang & Associates’ Chicago office will host a Client Appreciation Party on Saturday, September 12, 2009 for clients in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin. Attorneys Jerry Zhang and Tejas Shah will attend the party. The schedule of the Client Appreciation Party is as follows: Admission is Free. Space is limited to clients of the firm and their family members and will be reserved on a first-come, first-serve basis. If you would like to attend, please click the following link to register: http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e2kah95afyokhld3 ------ (08/27/2009) For more immigration news, please click here |
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