Secure the following:

• •

  SSA-754-F5 (Statement of Marital Relationship) from each spouse; and

• •

  SSA-753 (Statement Regarding Marriage) from a blood relative (i.e., a person related by blood, not by marriage or adoption) of each spouse.

Exclude the SSA-754-F4 or SSA-753 from the electronic documentation process. (For instructions about excluding these forms from documentation on EVID, see GN 00301.286E.3.b.) For instructions about retention of paper material after using the Non Disability Repository for Evidentiary Documents (NDRed), refer to GN 00301.322.

If you cannot obtain the SSA-753s as discussed, obtain other evidence. Although completion of the SSA-753 might prove embarrassing, that is not reason enough for not obtaining it. If the claimant explains satisfactorily in writing why use of the SSA-753 would actually be detrimental to the parties or to children born of the relationship, accept other evidence of equal value per the instructions on secondary proof of ceremonial marriage in GN 00305.025B.2.

We do not require an SSA-753 if other evidence, in addition to the SSA-754s, conclusively proves the establishment of a common-law marriage. Document why you did not obtain each of the SSA-753s by using a Report of Contact (RPOC), Development Worksheet (DW03), or similar screen.

Secure the following:

• •

  SSA-754-F4 from the surviving spouse,

• •

  SSA-753 from a blood relative of the surviving spouse, and

• •

  SSA-753s from two blood relatives of the deceased spouse.

If a state administrative, judicial, or other proceeding already proved the common-law marriage, use it as other evidence. For policy and examples on applying state law time limits to common-law (non-ceremonial) marriages, refer to GN 00305.076A.

NOTE: We must consider an adjudication of a state trial court if the claimant meets the criteria in Gray vs. Richardson (adopted as Social Security Ruling (SSR) 83-37C ). Under this SSR, although the agency is not bound by the decision of a state trial court in a proceeding on an issue to which they were not a party, the agency is not free to ignore an adjudication of a state trial court with the following prerequisites:

1. a. 

   the adjudication is by a state court of competent jurisdiction;

2. b. 

   the issue was genuinely contested before the state court by parties with opposing interests;

3. c. 

   the issue falls within the general category of domestic relations law; and

4. d. 

   the resolution of the issue by the state trial court is consistent with the law enunciated by the highest court in the state.

If you cannot obtain each of the SSA-753s, request a written explanation from the claimant. For each SSA-753 not obtained from a blood relative, get an SSA-753 from a person who knows the facts or obtain other evidence for the SSA-753.

If the state law entry in the Digest of State laws does not contain sufficient information for you to adjudicate an issue concerning the validity of a common-law marriage, use a legal opinion in PR 05600.000 as a precedent if the issue is the same, in the same state, and the facts are similar. Document the legal opinion used. For details on legal precedent opinions, see GN 01010.810. If you need to submit a legal opinion for submission to the Office of the General Counsel (OGC), follow the procedures in GN 01010.815.

CAUTION: See individual state law statutes in GN 00305.075.

Prepare an informal special determination on the RPOC screen in all cases, ensuring that the conclusion is consistent with existing policy and precedents. Where there is conflicting evidence, document how you resolved the conflict (i.e., why you accepted evidence supporting one position and rejected evidence supporting another position).

See Details:

GN 01010.360 Special Determinations for Claims Adjudication

PR 05600.000 Marital Relationship – Common-Law Marriages