Effective with the implementation of the Title 2 Redesign Release 3 (T2R3) on June
21, 2004, in fee petition cases, the primary claimant pays the authorized fee from
his/her withheld past-due benefits to the maximum extent possible. Then, if two or
more auxiliaries are involved and a portion, but not all, of their withheld past-due
benefits are used to pay all or part of the remainder of the authorized fee directly
to the representative, under the circumstances listed below, the benefit authorizer
(BA) or benefit technical examiner (BTE) prorates the excess past-due benefits withheld
from the auxiliary beneficiaries. The proration is based on each auxiliary beneficiary's
proportionate share of the difference between the total fee and the amount withheld
from the primary claimant’s past-due benefits.
SSA prorates the excess if:
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SSA certifies direct payment of all or part of the representative's fee;
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•
there is no need to continue withholding (e.g., for administrative review, or for
possible direct payment of a fee a Federal court authorizes under § 206(b) of the
Social Security Act) and the authorized fee was more than the amount SSA withheld
from the primary claimant’s past-due benefits;
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•
SSA must release the funds remaining to two or more auxiliary beneficiaries; and
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•
all auxiliaries do not live in the same household.
NOTE: SSA does not prorate the excess withholding when all auxiliary beneficiaries live
in one household.