TN 11 (11-02)

A. Policy

1. Check delivery

United States Treasury Foreign Assets Control Regulations and Cuban Assets Control Regulations (Treasury Circular 655) prohibit the delivery of all U.S. Government checks, including Social Security benefit checks, to (or on behalf of) beneficiaries in the countries on its restricted list.

The Treasury also refuses the use of power of attorney by anyone in the restricted countries.

2. Benefit accrual

Effective July 1, 1968, no monthly benefits accrue to a beneficiary who is not a citizen or national of the United States for any month in which he or she resides in a country to which payment is withheld because of Treasury regulations. See RS 02650.001C for a list of these restricted countries.

You must refer all claims for benefits that accrued prior to July 1, 1968 to the Office of International Programs (OIP).

Residence (not presence) in a restricted country is the cause for nonpayment. A beneficiary is a resident if he or she is present in the restricted country for a significant period of time and makes, or intends to make, his or her home there.

If U.S. citizenship is the basis for claiming accrued benefits, no payment may be made before verifying U.S. citizenship (as explained in RS 02650.005A.3.).

3. Lump-sum death payment (LSDP)

No LSDP is payable if a monthly benefit was not payable to the insured person for the month preceding the month of death due to residence in a restricted country.

B. Procedure

When a beneficiary goes to a Treasury restricted country, process the suspension (code SL) and change of address through the POS program (see MSOM T2PE.003.002 and MSOM T2PE 002.009).

NOTE: When a beneficiary goes to a country to which SSA restrictions prohibit payment (some of the republics of the former Soviet Union, as discussed in RS 02650.020), payments are also suspended using code SL.

C. List of Treasury restricted countries

This is a list of Treasury restricted countries.

NOTE: See RS 02650.005A.2.a. for Social Security checks to beneficiaries residing at the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.