Retention Date: December 30, 2025
Purpose
Effective September 10, 2025, beneficiaries in Zambia may receive payments via International Direct Deposit (IDD). This Emergency Message (EM) informs technicians about coding IDD bank data on the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR) for Title II benefits sent to financial institutions in Zambia. We store IDD bank data on the MBR in the same fields used for U.S. direct deposit.
Background
IDD service is a joint effort between our agency and its fiscal agent, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC). The process used to make direct deposit payments is generally similar among countries. 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.
Instructions for Zambia
The processing FI in Zambia will have a prefix of “74” at the beginning of the Routing and Transit Number (RTN). The first letter of the Depositor Account Number (DAN) field has the letter “V” assigned for Zambia.
IDD payments sent to Zambia must be in Zambian Kwacha (ZMV) accounts at local FIs. The beneficiary must provide complete information to OEIO or the Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) for input. DIO faxes incomplete forms to the FBU that serves Zambia. The FBU contacts the beneficiary or FI for the additional information.
The data to code IDD for Zambia comes from banks determined by the FRBKC. The bank data on the MBR reflects 24 characters including the country code of V.
Procedure for coding Zambia 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 Zambia using an SSA system (e.g. Modernized Claims System (MCS), Manual Adjustment Credit and Award Data Entry (MACADE), etc.).
You must then go to ITS.gov to enter the following data:
· account number
· account ownership
· account type
· address
· beneficiary full name (first, middle, and last)
· country
· enrollment status
· payee indicator
· Society for Worldwide Internet Financial Telecommunication-Business Identifier Code (SWIFT-BIC).
The SWIFT code contains a maximum of 11 characters:
· first four characters - bank code (alpha only);
· next two characters - ISO 3166-1 alpha 2 country code (alpha only);
· next two characters - location code (alpha and numeric) (passive participants have "1" in the second character); and
· last three characters - branch code, optional ('XXX' for primary office) (alpha and numeric).
ITS.gov instructions for Zambia
You must update ITS.gov with the bank account information prior to processing an initial award to ensure that the beneficiary receives payment. If the complete bank account information is not in ITS.gov when the payment processes, the payment rejects and returns to our agency.
Inputting bank data to the SSA system for Zambia
When you add or update IDD bank data using a SSA system (e.g. Post Entitlement Online System (POS), MACADE, etc.), you must:
· update ITS.gov on the same day;
· enter all POS direct deposit changes according to normal procedures;
· 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 ZMV account in Zambia? If no, STOP.
REASON: Beneficiaries in Zambia can only receive IDD payments in ZMV accounts.
If yes, go to step 4. |
| 4 | The RTN is 740000195 for Zambia. It contains the:
· Multi-country prefix of “74” for Zambia IDD;
· U.S. check digit code of “5” at the end of the RTN for all IDD accounts in Zambia.
No need to obtain the check digit code from Title II Interactive Comps. |
| 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 Zambia, code:
· “V” designated for Zambia,
· 13-digit account number.
NOTE: The account number for Zambia typically contains 13 digits. However, it can contain up to 29 characters. |
| 7 | You must take action on the same business day to enter into ITS.gov all the information listed in the “Procedure for coding Zambia bank data.” 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. |
Example of coding Zambia direct Deposit
The customer provides us with the account number: 1234567890112
The technician enters the information for the RTN.
· Code the RTN of 740000195
· Code the type of account 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.
· Start with the country code of “V” designated for Zambia; and
· Code the 13-digit account number “1234567890112” (typical for Zambia).
As a result of the inputs, POS will reflect the following:
· DIRECT DEPOSIT ROUTING TRANSIT NUMBER: 740000195 ACCOUNT TYPE (C/S): C or S
· DEPOSITOR ACCOUNT NUMBER: V1234567890112
The MBR will reflect the following:
· RTN- 740000195
· DAN- CV1234567890112
Direct all program-related and technical questions to your office Technical Expert (TE) or Program Service Center (PSC) Operations Analysis (OA) staff. RO support staff or PSC OA staff may refer questions, concerns or problems to their Central Office contacts.
References
GN 02402. 201 Background and Policy for Direct Deposit Outside the U.S.