Social Security Lowers SS-5 and Numident Copy Fees from October 1, 2026
Archive News · SS-5 and Numident fees
The Social Security Administration has updated its fees for non-program information. For requests received on or after October 1, 2026, a copy of an original Form SS-5 costs $23 and a copy of a Numident record costs $22. The notice was published in the Federal Register on September 21, 2026.
What changed
The previous schedule, in effect since October 1, 2024, set the fees at $27 for an SS-5 copy and $26 for a Numident record. Each request is now $4 cheaper. Some older pages on the SSA website may still show earlier amounts, so rely on the current notice when you pay.
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Why it matters for Polish-American research
The SS-5 is the application for a Social Security card, filled in by the worker. For many Polish immigrants and their children it is the only American document where they wrote both parents’ names, including the mother’s maiden name, and a place of birth in their own words. The Numident is a computer extract and can be shorter or abbreviated.
What you can do now
- Ask for a copy of the original SS-5 when you need the parents and the birthplace as the applicant wrote them.
- Have the full name, the Social Security number if known, and proof of death or age as required by SSA.
- Read our comparison before choosing between the SS-5 and the Numident.
Sources and research tools
- Federal Register, September 21, 2026: Charging Standard Administrative Fees for Non-Program Information
- Federal Register, August 23, 2024: previous fee schedule
How we can help
When a change opens a new record for your family, we can fold it into a research project: we order or read the record, compare it with your other documents and follow the trail to the parish in Poland. See the research projects for scope and prices.
