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(Washington, DC) – Changes are coming for Social Security beneficiaries who receive paper checks.
The SSA will continue to offer paper checks in specific, limited situations (such as when a beneficiary lacks access to digital banking or faces hardship), but the primary focus and strong recommendation remain on electronic payment methods due to their efficiency, security, and cost-effectiveness
Beneficiaries are strongly encouraged to have their benefit payments delivered electronically by direct deposit; or, if they don’t have a bank account, receive their benefit payments on a pre-paid debit card known as Direct Express.
A Social Security spokesperson said the administration is “proactively contacting” beneficiaries to alert them about the change and noted that if “a beneficiary has no other means to receive payment, we will continue to issue paper checks.”
The reason is three-fold:
- Increased Security: Electronic payments are less vulnerable to fraud and mail theft compared to paper checks, according to the SSA.
- Enhanced Efficiency: Electronic payments are processed faster and more reliably.
- Reduced Costs: Electronic transactions are significantly less expensive for the government to process compared to paper checks
