When PIRS receives a request for reclamation from the Office of Earnings and International Operations (OEIO) or a consular office, PIRS:

1. 1. 

   Obtains the $US amount from the files;

2. 2. 

   Converts the $US amount to the correct foreign currency amount, if applicable;

3. 3. 

   Obtains the bank address and beneficiary's account number;

4. 4. 

   Sends a written request to the financial institution (FI) requesting the return of the funds;

5. 5. 

   Notifies the requester of the date the request was sent to the FI; and

6. 6. 

   Diaries for 40 days (to allow for mail delivery).

If the FI does not respond within 40 days, PIRS sends a followup letter to the FI and a notice to OEIO of the second request. If the FI does not respond to the followup within 40 days, PIRS notifies OEIO and closes the case.

Effective immediately, PIRS will upload a copy of the written request to the FI in ITS.gov and annotate in the comment section if the FI provides a response.

If the FI returns some or all of the funds, the money goes directly to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY). FRBNY returns the funds to SSA with the original trace number. If the return is only a partial refund of a payment, FRBNY returns the partial payment with a pseudo trace number and notifies PIRS that SSA will receive a manual return from Treasury.

Although PIRS does not accept reclamation requests for under $100, FRBNY does accept any returned payments (full or partial) that an FI or Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) returns.

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  GN 02408.915 – Process When OEIO Is Responsible for the Reclamation

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  GN 02408.930 – International Direct Deposit (IDD) Reclamation Process for a Federal Benefits Unit (FBU)