TN 31 (01-08)

A. Background

It is important to act on death information as quickly as possible. The death of a beneficiary abroad requires special handling to avoid sending erroneous payments after death. Because of systems limitations, death termination is not automatically applied to the record of a beneficiary residing abroad if there is any other beneficiary on the record that has not been terminated. This is true for the wage earner, as well as for any auxiliaries or survivors.

Therefore, if there is another non-terminated beneficiary on the record, the record of a foreign resident beneficiary is not automatically terminated for death because of:

• a payment returned for reason of death (whether issued by check or direct deposit), or

• a death input through postentitlement screens other than MADCAP.

Under these circumstances, these actions cause an alert to Office of Earnings and International Operations (OEIO), but payments continue. OEIO must make a MADCAP input to terminate the record and stop the payments.

Juan Beneficiario who lives in Spain dies. Even though the FBU makes a death input, payments will continue to be issued to him, and his widow will continue to receive payments only as a “B,” until OEIO makes a MADCAP input to terminate his record for death, convert the “B” to “D,” and pay the lump sum death benefit (LSDP).

Otto Beneficiary and his wife Anna, living in Germany, are receiving benefits on his account. Anna dies, and the FBU makes a death input. However, even though no LSDP is payable and her death will not change his benefit amount, her benefits continue until OEIO makes a MADCAP death input.

B. Process

The key to successful processing of death information is close coordination between OEIO, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC), the Federal Benefit Units (FBU) and border offices. When death information is received by one of these entities, it needs to be shared with others to prevent erroneous payments after death and to aid in recovery of payments released before the death report is successfully processed to the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR).

1. OEIO Learns of the Death from an Outside Source

When OEIO learns of the death of an IDD beneficiary from a source other than FRBKC or an FBU in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, or United Kingdom, then OEIO:

• Obtains the date of death if it was not included in the report. (OEIO may ask FRBKC to assist in obtaining the date of death from the deceased beneficiary's FI.)

• Applies a death termination to the record through MADCAP.

• Codes the death information to ITS.gov, if it is not already there.

• Notifies the FBU if the beneficiary had IDD to an FI in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, or United Kingdom.

• Requests an intercept by FRBKC if the beneficiary had IDD to an FI in a country not listed in GN 02402.230B.1., the 4^th bullet above and the death input was applied to the record after the cutoff. (GN 02402.235 describes intercepts of IDD payments.).

• Follows GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

2. OEIO Learns of the Death from an FBU in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, or United Kingdom

When OEIO learns of the death of an IDD beneficiary from an FBU in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, or United Kingdom, then OEIO does the following:

• If the deceased beneficiary had IDD to an FI in France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, or United Kingdom, then OEIO assumes that the FBU will take care of any intercepts and reclamations that are needed.

• Follows GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

3. OEIO Learns of the Death from FRBKC

When FRBKC informs OEIO of the death of a beneficiary who did not live in one of the nine countries listed in GN 02402.230B.2., then OEIO:

• Applies a death termination to the record through MADCAP;

• Examines the record to determine if a reclamation is needed; and

• Follows GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

4. FBU Learns of the Death

When the FBU learns of the death of an IDD beneficiary, the FBU sends a death input. The FBU then codes ITS.gov to intercept any payment(s) that might go out after death. This will prevent any further payments from reaching the FI.

The FBU then follows GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

5. FO/TSC Learns of the Death of an IDD Beneficiary

When an FO/TSC learns of the death of an IDD beneficiary, the FO/TSC asks for the date of death and transmits a death input. If the beneficiary was receiving benefits to a routing number that begins with 51, 61, 62, 70, or 71, the FO/TSC also sends a Modernized Data Worksheet (MDW) to OEIO to notify FRBKC of the death. If the deceased beneficiary is the only beneficiary on the record who has not been terminated, the FO/TSC assumes that the input will terminate the record. If there is at least one other beneficiary on the record who has not been terminated, the FO/TSC asks OEIO to make MADCAP input to terminate the record for reason of death. (For an explanation of the need for this input, see GN 02402.230A.)

C. OEIO Procedure

Follow these steps when you receive a report of the death of a beneficiary receiving IDD payments.

1. Has the record already been terminated for death?

   • If yes, go to step 2.

   • If no, input a death termination.

2. Do you know the date of death?

   • If yes, make any necessary corrections to the record to pay survivors correctly. Input the death to ITS.gov to intercept any payments after death to the deceased beneficiary.

   • If no, go to step 3.

3. Follow GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

D. FO/TSC Procedure

Follow these steps when you receive a report of the death of a beneficiary and the routing number for direct deposit begins with 5, 6, or 7, which indicates that the beneficiary was receiving benefits through international direct deposit (IDD).

1. Ask for the date of death.

2. Input the date of death.

3. Determine whether the input will automatically terminate the record.

   • If the deceased beneficiary was the only beneficiary on the record who had not been terminated, assume that the input will terminate the record.

   • If there is at least one other beneficiary on the record who has not been terminated, send a Modernized Data Worksheet (MDW) to OEIO to make MADCAP input.

4. Ask OEIO to code the death to ITS.gov. (FRBKC will then intercept any further payments to the deceased beneficiary.)

E. FBU Procedure

Follow these steps when you receive a report of the death of a beneficiary receiving IDD payments.

1. Ask for the date of death.

2. Send a death input, or send a death notification to OEIO if your FBU cannot send direct inputs.

3. Code the death on ITS.gov.

4. Does the routing number through which the deceased individual's payments were being sent begin with 51, 61, 62, 70, or 71?

   • If yes, code the death on ITS.gov.

   • If no, go to step 5.

5. Is your FBU in the country where the FI is located?

   • If yes, code the death to ITS.gov, and also send a reclamation request to the FI for any payments already paid after death and not returned.

   • If no, notify the appropriate FBU of the death.

6. Follow GN 02408.900 to GN 02408.950 to reclaim any incorrect payments that went out after death.

F. References

IDD Reclamations, GN 02408.900 through GN 02408.950

IDD reclamation forms, GN 02408.920

Intercepting IDD payments, GN 02402.235

Overpayments - list of subchapters, GN 02200.000