The Regional Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) of the American Embassy in Santo Domingo is responsible for providing services to all the Caribbean, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela.

The FBU is responsible for the administration of the benefit programs for the following U.S. government agencies:

• Social Security Administration. 
• U.S. Office of Personnel Management. 
• Department of Veterans Affairs. 
• Department of Labor. 
• Railroad Retirement Board. 

For general information on Social Security, please visit the SSA website.

SOCIAL SECURITY ONLINE SERVICES

Until now, you needed a U.S. mailing address to access Social Security’s free my Social Security account and use their online services. Now, many people without a U.S. mailing address can create a personal my Social Security account and use the online services with an ID.me credential.  If you don’t already have an ID.me credential:

1. Go to ssa.gov/myaccount.
2. On the my Social Security page, select the “Create an Account” button and then select “Sign in with ID.me.”
3. Select the “Create an ID.me account” link and follow the instructions.
4. On ID.me’s “Verify Your Identity” screen, select the “I don’t live in the United States” link at the bottom of the page and follow the instructions to complete the registration process.
5. Once you create your credential, you will be returned to the my Social Security webpage for next steps.

If you already have an ID.me credential, select “Sign In” from the my Social Security page and then sign in to ID.me. You will be redirected to your my Social Security account.

Note: if you had a my Social Security account prior to moving overseas, you will need to create an ID.me credential to use it from an international address.

Once you have created your personal my Social Security account, you will be able to:

• Check your earnings.
• Get your benefit estimates.
• Check the status of your application or appeal.
• View, print, or save a benefit verification letter (Social Security is unable to mail to a foreign address).
• Change Special Notice Options (SNO Notices).
• Access some representative payee services.
• View, print, or save a replacement SSA-1099/1042S tax statement (Social Security is unable to mail replacement statements to a foreign address).
• Access online notices.
• Request a replacement Medicare Card.

Some services are not available outside of the United States:

• Changing your address.
• Changing your direct deposit.
• Requesting a replacement Social Security card.

Contact

 The Federal Benefits Unit operates on an appointments-only system. To request an appointment email us at FBU.Santo.Domingo@ssa.gov, make sure you include all your contact information. The Federal Benefits Unit operates on an appointments-only system. We normally respond to e-mail inquiries within 5-working days. Please only send one e-mail regarding your issue.

Mailing Address:

Unidad de Beneficios Federales (FBU)
Av. República de Colombia #57
Santo Domingo
República Dominicana
Código postal 10505
Fax Number: 809-922-7001

Please access the schedule of the days on which the Embassy will be closed.

FOREIGN ENFORCEMENT QUESTIONNAIRE (FEQ) – SSA-7161 AND SSA-7162

In addition to relying on beneficiaries (a retired person or family member) to report events that may affect their benefits, SSA contacts beneficiaries outside the United States annually or biennially (every two years) to verify their status if they have a foreign address on record.

SSA contacts beneficiaries by sending the Foreign Enforcement Questionnaire (SSA-7161/SSA-7162) that should be returned within 60 days. If it is not send back, benefits are suspended.

We can help you get your benefits reinstated when this happens and the quickest way to do that is by following these steps:

Send us an email to FBU.Santo.Domingo@ssa.gov using as subject: FEQ-country where you live-last name of the worker’s record under which you receive benefits (sample: FEQ-Dominican Republic-Doe) and add the following information:

• • Complete name of the beneficiary that did not receive the monthly payment.
  • SSN under which benefits are paid
  • Two phone numbers
  • Address
  • Reason for the email: Non receipt of monthly benefit

Wait for a response within 5 business days. If the reason for suspension of payment is the non-return of the Foreign Enforcement Questionnaire, The Federal Benefits Unit will send you by email a blank form for your completion and signature. You will have to send the form back by postal mail. We will send instructions in our response.

After receiving the form, we will reinstate the benefits within the next 10 business days.

Reporting the death of a beneficiary

The Federal Benefits Unit must be informed when a beneficiary passes away. You can report the death of a beneficiary by sending an email to FBU.Santo.Domingo@ssa.gov, please include the SSN and date of death on your message.