Q: I am 15 and receive Social Security, which goes to my mom. Should she be giving me the money?
A: When a person younger than age 18 receives Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the payment is usually sent to an adult on their behalf rather than directly to the child. This adult is called the representative payee and it is his or her responsibility to direct the management of the benefit funds.
Representative payees are also appointed for adults who are incapable of managing their benefits. Payees are often family members but can be different people or even an organization.
In the booklet A Guide for Representative Payees, www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10076.pdf , a new payee is instructed in how funds should be used and how funds not immediately needed should be held for the future. Payees are required to report to Social Security about how funds are used. Representative payee instructions go into detail about how funds are to be used.
Should your mom give you the money? Not directly, but the funds must be used for you. Just handing the benefit money to you could mean that she was not exercising proper control of the funds in your best interest.
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A key representative payee responsibility is to know beneficiary needs so that the Social Security or SSI funds can be best used for the person’s care and well-being, in particular making sure that day-to-day food and shelter needs are met. Having basic needs of food, shelter and clothing met indicate benefits are used for you even if you do not directly handle the money. Consider asking your mom to share or create a budget with you to help give you experience in handling money.
Depending on high school attendance or disability, Social Security benefits for children might continue or end at age 18. If they continue past age 18, the child often starts to receive them directly, without having a representative payee.
Based in Grand Forks, Howard I. Kossover is the Social Security Public Affairs Specialist for North Dakota and western Minnesota. Send general interest questions to him at howard.kossover@ssa.gov . Read his online articles at http://socialsecurityinfo.areavoices.com .
