SSA - POMS: GN 02402.317 - Coding British Virgin Islands Bank Data on the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)

A. Background for coding British Virgin Islands bank data

This section describes how to code bank data for direct deposit of Title II benefits to a financial institution (FI) in British Virgin Islands. The bank data will be stored on the MBR in the same fields as are used for U.S. direct deposit.

Special coding identifies the data as direct deposit for the British Virgin Islands. This allows us to route benefit payments through the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC) and the processor bank in British Virgin Islands 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 International Operations (IO), International Benefits and Processing (IBP) 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-OP7 International Direct Deposit Signup Form for the British Virgin Islands; or
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Any document that contains the 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

Citibank serves as the processor bank for IDD to several countries, including British Virgin Islands. All Caribbean countries for which Citibank is the processor bank have a prefix of 70 at the beginning of the routing number (RTN), and an assigned letter in the first position of the Depositor Account Number (DAN). The letter assigned for British Virgin Islands is "G".

D. Overview of IDD for the British Virgin Islands

IDD payments sent to the British Virgin Islands must be in U.S. dollar (USD) accounts at local FIs. The beneficiary must provide complete information to IBP or the Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) for input. IBP faxes incomplete forms to the FBU that serves the British Virgin Islands. The FBU contacts the beneficiary or FI for additional information.

E. Description of British Virgin Islands Bank Data

The data for coding IDD for the comes from banks determined by the FRBKC. The bank data on the MBR consists of 22 characters including the British Virgin Islands country code of "G".

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A bank code of 9 digits (a zero, a 3-digit bank code, and a 5-digit branch code); and
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An account number of up to 12 characters.

F. Procedure for coding British Virgin Islands IDD bank data

The FRBKC relies on SSA 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 British Virgin Islands 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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Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication - Business Identifier Code (SWIFT-BIC);
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beneficiary address – NOTE : Enter the beneficiary’s address in this format: VG/Town/Name . Start with the ISO country code for the British Virgin Islands (VG);
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bank name;
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bank address.

1. Obtain SWIFT-BIC code from the FI

The SWIFT code contains a minimum of 8 characters and a maximum of 11 characters:

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First four characters - bank code (only letters);
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Next two characters - ISO 3166-1 alpha-two country code (only letters);
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Next two characters - location code (letters and digits) (passive participants have "1" in the second character); and
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Last three characters - branch code, optional ('XXX' for primary office) (letters and digits).

2. Process initial award

Prior to processing an initial award to ensure that the beneficiary receives payment you must update the bank account information ITS.gov. When the payment is processed, the payment is rejected and returns to our agency if the complete bank account information is not in ITS.gov.

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 USD account in the British Virgin Islands? If no, STOP. REASON: Beneficiaries in British Virgin Islands can only receive IDD payments in XOF accounts. If yes, go to step 4.
4	Code the RTN as follows: – Start with 70, the prefix assigned to countries for which Citibank is the processor bank; – Code a zero (0); – Code the 3-digit bank code; – Code the first two digits of the 5-digit branch/transit code; – Code the U.S. check digit. Obtain the U.S. check digit by using the Check Digit program on Title II/Interactive Comps. NOTE: No need to obtain the check digit code from Tittle 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	Code the DAN as follows: • Start with the country code of "G" designated for the British Virgin Islands; • Code the remaining 3 digits of the Branch/Transit Code; • Code the account number. Do not include any dashes or spaces.
7	You must take action on the same business day to enter into ITS.gov all the information listed in GN 02402.317F. 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 British Virgin Islands direct deposit

The customer provides us with a signup form for the British Virgin Islands containing the account number: "123456789012", Bank Code (123), and Branch/Transit Code (45678).

1. Derive the RTN

The technician enters the information for the RTN.

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Code the RTN 700123452 - (The final digit, 2, is the U.S. check digit for 70012345);
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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 co9des the DAN.

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Start with the country code of "G" designed for the British Virgin Islands;
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Code the remaining 3 digits of the Branch/Transit Code "678";
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Code the account number "123456789012".

H. References

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GN 00203.020 Identity of Claimants
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GN 01010.255 Adjudication of Foreign Claims
•

GN 01702.310C Routing of Claims for U.S. Benefits Involving Totalization
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GN 02402.025 Direct Deposit Post Entitlement Interview
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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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ITS.gov International Treasury Services (U.S. Treasury system)

Social Security

Program Operations Manual System (POMS)

GN 02402.317 Coding British Virgin Islands Bank Data on the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)