Add death data received by SSA from funeral directors via Form SSA-721 (Statement of Death by Funeral Director) to the NUMIDENT if the deceased individual was not a beneficiary.

If the deceased individual was a beneficiary, follow instructions in GN 02602.050 reports of death. Follow instructions in GN 02602.051 for processing reports of death using the Death Information Processing System (DIPS).

Add the death record for a non-beneficiary to the NUMIDENT using the Death Information Processing System (DIPS).

Retain the SSA-721 as follows:

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  Destroy SSA-721 for a non-beneficiary or non-productive SSA-721, after updating the NUMIDENT with the death information. For instructions on handling the SSA-721 as a lead, refer to GN 00202.020.

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  For a beneficiary:

If a beneficiary filed a claim, annotate the Evidence (EVID) screen with “721” and destroy the SSA-721. For more information on the EVID screen, see MSOM EVID 001.003.

NOTE: Add the SSA-721 to the listing in GN 00301.288 in a future transmittal.

If the applicant does not file a claim, process the SSA-721 per GN 02602.050 and keep until we update SSA records. Then destroy the SSA-721.