Form SSA-8 Application for Lump-Sum Death Payment

Form SSA-8 Instructions

Provide the following details in the SSA-8 Form:

1. Enter your name and the deceased worker's name, gender, social security number (SSN), dates of birth and death, and place of death.
2. State whether the deceased individual ever filed for Social Security benefits, Supplemental Security Income, Medicare insurance, or a Social Security period of disability. Name the person on whose Social Security record this application was filed and enter their SSN.
3. If the deceased worked within the past two years, record the amount of their earnings during the year of death and the year before death.
4. If the wage earner died prior to age 66 and within the past four months, state whether the deceased was unable to work because of an illness or injury.
5. If the deceased was in active military or naval service, received benefits from Federal agencies, or worked in the railroad industry for seven years or more, answer "yes."
6. State whether the deceased was ever covered by another country's social security system and whether they are survived by a spouse.
7. Describe the marriages of the deceased. Enter the name, date of birth, and SSN of the spouse, date, and place of marriage, and indicate how, when, and where it ended.
8. List all the surviving children and dependent grandchildren of the deceased who were unmarried in the past twelve months and under 18, 18 to 19, and attending secondary school, or older than 18 with a disability.
9. State whether there are surviving parents of the deceased who received support from the deceased when the deceased became disabled or at the time of death.
10. If you filed for any benefits on the deceased's earnings or lived together at the time of their death, answer "yes". Describe the nature of the condition or illness that kept you separated.
11. If you are a surviving spouse under age 66, state whether you are disabled and unable to work. If you had any prior marriages, provide information about them.
12. Sign and date the form. Add your contact information and banking account details to receive direct deposit payments.

Where to Mail Form SSA-8?

You cannot mail Form SSA-8 - instead, you submit it in person in your local Social Security office within two years after the death of the deceased wage earner. You may schedule an appointment in advance and prepare to file additional documentation to demonstrate your eligibility.

Not the document you were looking for? Check out these related SSA forms:

• Form SSA-8000-BK, Application For Supplemental Security Income (SSI);
• Form SSA-2-BK, Application for Wife's or Husband's Insurance Benefits;
• Form SSA-24, Application for Survivors Benefits.