The Social Security Administration (SSA) works with ID.me to verify your identity for requesting information online. ID.me is certified against federal standards to provide secure login and identity verification. Your ID.me verified identity helps businesses and government agencies ensure that the person logging in to your account is really you and not someone pretending to be you.
This article explains how to set up your ID.me account to use with SSA for work purposes.
Get started
How you begin depends on whether you already have an ID.me account or need to create an ID.me account for the first time. Select the appropriate tab below for step-by-step instructions.
Do not create another account if you already have one. Instead, you’ll need to:
- Add your work email to your ID.me account
- Sign in to the SSA and consent to share your verified identity information
Add your work email address
To add your work email address to your ID.me account:
- Go to ID.me My Account and sign in.
- From My Account, select Profile, then in the Email section, select +Add an email.
- Enter your work email address. If you want to label this email address as your work email, check the box next to “Work”.
- Select Send confirmation. A confirmation message will be sent to your work email.
Tip: If you don't receive the email, check your spam folder. To send a new confirmation email, select the three dots next to the email, then select Resend confirmation. - Select the link in the email to confirm this email address.
After you have confirmed the email, it displays in the “Profile” tab of your account.
Sign in and share your information
To access the SSA:
- Go to the Social Security login page.
- Select Sign In with ID.me, then sign in with your ID.me account and complete multi-factor authentication (MFA).
- If required, follow the prompts to provide any additional information.
- From the Authorize screen, review the information that SSA will receive and then select Allow to consent to share that information with them.
If you have never created an ID.me account, you need to:
- Create an ID.me account using your personal email address
- Add your work email to your ID.me account
- Verify your identity
Create an ID.me account
To help ensure you always have access to your ID.me account, create your ID.me account using your personal email address, then add your work email.
To create a new account:
- Go to ID.me My Account and select Create an ID.me account.
- Enter your personal email address and a strong password, then select Create account. Learn how to create a strong password.
- Follow the prompts to finish setting up your ID.me account and to confirm ownership of your email.
Add your work email to your account
To add your work email:
- From My Account, select Profile, then in the Email section, select +Add an email.
- Enter your work email address. If you want to label this email address as your work email, check the box next to “Work.”
- Select Send confirmation. A confirmation message will be sent to your work email address.
Tip: If you don’t receive the email, check your spam folder. To send a new confirmation email, select the three dots next to the email, then select Resend confirmation. - Select the link in the email to confirm this email address.
After you have confirmed the email, it displays in the “Profile” tab of your account.
Verify for SSA
To verify your identity:
- Go to the Social Security login page, then select Sign in with ID.me.
- Sign in to your ID.me account.
- Set-up your multi-factor authentication method. Follow the prompts to complete your MFA setup.
- On the “Verify Your Identity” screen, choose which document you’d like to use to verify your identity, then follow the prompts to upload the document.
Tip: Follow our best practices to take photos of your documents. - Submit a photo selfie. Your selfie will only be used to confirm that the person in the selfie matches your government ID.
Note: If selfie verification doesn’t work, you may need to verify on a video call with a Video Chat Agent. - When prompted, enter your phone number, and then enter your Social Security number. If you live outside of the United States and do not have an SSN, select I don’t have a Social Security Number.
- Review your information, then select Yes to confirm it is accurate.
- From the Authorize screen, review the information that the SSA will receive and then select Allow to consent to share that information with the SSA.
After ID.me verifies your identity, you will receive a confirmation message as a way to protect you from fraud.
Video Chat Agent
If there is an issue verifying your identity using self-service, you may need to complete your verification by uploading additional documents and joining a video call. Wait times can vary, but you can schedule a video call appointment at a time that’s convenient for you.
You will need to have two primary documents or one primary document and one secondary document to complete the process.
You may need to provide additional documentation:
- To prove your Social Security number
- To prove your current address
- If your name has changed
You’ll need to present your physical documents on the video call.
Do you have multiple ID.me accounts?
If you already created a duplicate ID.me account using your work email address or another email address that you own, follow the steps in How to use an email address that’s on your duplicate account to make your email address available to add to your original ID.me account.
Get help
ID.me can help if you have trouble with the identity verification process. Common issues include:
- Account sign-in issues
- Uploading identification documents or selfies
- Fixing documents that were rejected
SSA can best help with questions and next steps after you complete the verification process. For example, you may have questions about your benefits or services. Before contacting them:
- Confirm your verification was successful
- Confirm you shared your information with the organization
- Review our best practices and sample messages of how to request help from the agency you need to access