SSA - POMS: GN 02402.339 - Coding Greek Bank Data for the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)

A. Background for coding Greek bank data

This section describes how to code bank data for international direct deposit (IDD) of Title II benefits to a financial institution (FI) in Greece. We store IDD bank data on the MBR in the same fields used for U.S. direct deposit.

Special coding identifies the bank data as a Greece direct deposit. This allows us to route benefit payments through the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC) and the processor bank in Greece to the beneficiary's local FI.

If you receive an IDD request in a U.S. domestic (i.e, non-border) field office (FO), forward all appropriate information to the Office of Earnings and International Operations, (OEIO), Division of International Operations (DIO) to process.

For detailed instructions on IDD requests and forwarding information, see

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GN 02402.201 Background and Policy for Direct Deposit Outside the U.S.
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GN 02402.205 Direct Deposit Enrollment Outside the U.S.
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GN 01010.255 Adjudication of Foreign Claims
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GN 01702.310C Routing of Claims for U.S. Benefits Involving Totalization

B. How we receive IDD bank data

We receive requests to input bank data by mail, phone, or fax in the following formats:

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Blank check;
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SSA-1199-GR-OP1 International Direct Deposit Signup Form for Greece (See SSA-1199-GE for Greek translation); or
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Any document that contains required banking information.

If you receive information with discrepancies, see the following instructions:

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GN 00203.020 Identity of Claimants
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GN 02402.025 Direct Deposit Post Entitlement Interview

C. Multi-country contract

The processing FI in Greece will have a prefix of “65” at the beginning of the Routing Transit Number (RTN).

D. Overview of IDD for Greece

IDD payments sent to Greece must be in Euro (EUR) accounts at local FIs. The beneficiary must provide complete information to DIO or the Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) for input. DIO faxes incomplete forms to the FBU that serves Greece. The FBU contacts the beneficiary or FI for the additional information.

E. Description of Greek IDD bank data

The data for coding IDD for Greece will come from the International Bank Account Number (IBAN) provided to the beneficiary from his or her FI. The IBAN will be 27 characters. However, the IDD bank data reflected on the MBR will consist of 26 characters. Technicians will use the IBAN to derive the RTN and DAN when processing an IDD request.

IMPORTANT: Because the DAN field can only hold up to 16 digits, complete bank information must be coded in ITS.gov for each beneficiary. Additional characters may be required for the IDD payment to process. Therefore, technicians must follow a two-step process to avoid payment rejection:

1.

Input all IDD bank data in ITS.gov, as outlined in Section F; and
2.

Input the allowable number of characters via SSA systems to update the MBR.

F. Procedure for coding Greece bank data

The FRBKC relies on us to provide the complete bank data to ensure correct posting of payments to a customer’s account. If the information is incomplete, the FRBKC rejects the payment and returns the funds to our agency.

You may establish or change IDD bank data for Greece using an SSA system (e.g. Modernized Claims System (MCS), Manual Adjustment Credit and Award Data Entry (MACADE)).

You must then go to ITS.gov to enter the following data:

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first and last name of the beneficiary
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payee indicator
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enrollment status
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country
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account type
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account ownership
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International Bank Account Number (IBAN)
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Society for Worldwide Internet Financial Telecommunication-Business Identifier Code (SWIFT-BIC)
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beneficiary address
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reclamation country

1. Obtain SWIFT-BIC code from FI

The SWIFT code consists of 8 to 11 alphanumeric characters. When an 8-digit code is given, it refers to the primary office:

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First 4 characters - bank code (alpha only)
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Next 2 characters - ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code (alpha only)
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Next 2 characters - location code (alpha and numeric) (passive participant will have "1" in the second character)
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Last 3 characters - branch code, optional ('XXX' for primary office) (alpha and numeric)

2. Process initial award

Secure IBAN and SWIFT-BIC coding from the beneficiary at the time of filing. The FBU inputs an initial IDD claim if the beneficiary elects the option of direct deposit. All initial IDD claims that an FBU takes for Greece require input into ITS.gov and an SSA system (i.e. MCS, MACADE, etc.) on the same day. You must complete all initial claims that the International Benefits Office (IBO) takes. You must input all initial claims involving Greece IDD into ITS.gov and an SSA system (i.e. MCS, MACADE, etc.) on the same day.

NOTE: If there is dire need or hardship involved, advise the beneficiary of the option of initiating payment via a paper check. Inform the beneficiary that the bank may charge for cashing the check. If the beneficiary chooses the option of paper check, the FBU documents and processes the initial claim.

3. Add or update bank data using SSA systems

When you add or update IDD bank data using an SSA system (e.g. Post Entitlement Online System (POS), MACADE), you must:

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update ITS.gov on the same day;
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enter all POS direct deposit changes according to normal procedures;

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use procedures outlined in the following chart when processing within four business days of the current operational month (COM) cutoff date.

Step	Action
1	Are you coding an initial claim? If yes, go to step 3. If no, go to step 2.
2	Is the beneficiary's address on the MBR in a foreign country (PCOC = 8)? If no, STOP. REASON: The MBR does not accept the IDD information unless the address is in a foreign country. If yes, go to step 3.
3	Is the beneficiary's account a EUR account in Greece? If no, STOP . REASON: Beneficiaries in Greece can only receive IDD payments in EUR accounts. If yes, go to step 4.
4	Code the RTN (9 digits total) as follows: – Start with 65, the prefix SSA has designated for Greek IDD. – Code the 3-digit bank code (obtained through the IBAN; see GN 02402.339G). – Code the first three digits of the 4-digit branch code. – Code the U.S. check digit, which you will obtain through Title II Interactive Comps from the Main Menus 07/Sub Menu 16.
5	Code the account type: – “S” for savings; or – "C" for checking. If the beneficiary does not indicate an account type, use a “C” for checking account.
6	To code the DAN for Greece, code: – The fourth digit of the branch code; and – The 16-digit account number.
7	You must take action on the same business day to enter into ITS.gov all the information listed in GN 02402.339F. You must access ITS.gov or ask a co-worker to update the required information into ITS.gov. REMINDER: When information is not available, FRBKC rejects the payment and returns it to our agency.

G. Example of coding Greek direct deposit

The customer provides us with a signup form for Greece containing the following information: IBAN: GR1601101250000000012300695 SWIFT: ETHNGRAA125

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The first 2 characters of the Greek IBAN are “GR”, which represent the International Organizational for Standardization (ISO) country code.
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The third and fourth characters are the IBAN check digits.
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The technician should never code the IBAN ISO country code or check digit to the MBR.
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The next three characters are the three-digit bank code.
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The next four characters are the four-digit branch code.
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The next sixteen characters of the IBAN represent the 16-digit bank account number.

1. Derive the RTN

The technician enters the information for the RTN.

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Code the prefix of "65" (SSA designated prefix for Greece);
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Code the 3-digit bank code “011”;
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Code the first 3 digits of the branch code “012”;
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Code the U.S. check digit (i.e., 8) (obtained from the Title II interactive Comps from the Main Menus 07/Sub Menu 16);
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Code the account type as a “C” for Checking or an “S” for Savings. If no account type indicated, use a “C” for Checking.

2. Derive the DAN

The technician codes the DAN.

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Code the last digit of the branch code “5”;
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Code the 16-digit account number “0000000012300695”

3. Obtain the following information

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RTN: 650110128

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Checking

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DAN: 50000000012300695

a. POS reflects the direct deposit information

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DIRECT DEPOSIT ROUTING TRANSIT NUMBER: 650110128 ACCOUNT TYPE (C/S): C
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DEPOSITOR ACCOUNT NUMBER: 50000000012300695
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CANCEL DIRECT DEPOSIT (Y):
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DIRECT EXPRESS (Y):

b. The MBR reflects the following information

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RTN- 650110128
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DAN- C50000000012300695

H. References

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GN 00203.020 Identity of Claimants
•

GN 01010.255 Adjudication of Foreign Claims
•

GN 01702.310C Routing of Claims for U.S. Benefits Involving Totalization
•

GN 02402.025 Direct Deposit Post Entitlement Interview
•

GN 02402.201 Background and Policy for Direct Deposit Outside the U.S.
•

GN 02402.205 Direct Deposit Enrollment Outside the U.S.
•

ITS.gov International Treasury Services (U.S. Treasury system)

Social Security

Program Operations Manual System (POMS)

GN 02402.339 Coding Greek Bank Data for the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)