SSA - POMS: GN 02402.342 - Coding Panama Bank Data for the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)

A. Background for coding Panamabank data

This section describes how to code bank data for international direct deposit (IDD) of Title II benefits to a financial institution (FI) in Panama. 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 Panama direct deposit. This allows us to route benefit payments through the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC) and the processor bank in Panama to the beneficiary's local FI.

IDD for Panama (along with Poland and Hungary) requires more digits than are available in the SSA direct deposit (RTN and DAN) fields. Full information must be on ITS.gov so the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (FRBKC) can add the extra digits before sending the payments to Panama’s banks. All bank accounts in Panama are U.S. dollar accounts. The U.S. Embassy in Panama City reviews all completed forms for correct data. The Federal Benefit Unit (FBU) in San Jose, Costa Rica, makes the inputs to ITS.gov . Procedures vary according to the office that receives the IDD request. Panamanian IDD enrollment forms are available at the end of this section.

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.
•

GN 01010.255, Adjudication of Foreign Claims
•

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-OP21 International Direct Deposit Signup Form for Panama; 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. Overview of IDD for Panama

IDD payments sent to Panama must be in U.S. dollars (USD) 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 Panama. The FBU contacts the beneficiary or FI for the additional information.

NOTE: The Panamanian balboa is on a par with the U.S. dollar and is available only in coins. The balboa is mainly for use in vending machines.

D. Description of Panama bank data

1. Bank and account codes

The IDD coding for Panama bank data consists of 27 digits, as follows:

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A 9-digit bank code. (This must have all 9 digits.)
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An up to 18-digit account number. (This must have up to 18 digits.)

2. Panamanian bank data on the MBR and ITS.gov

Because there are not enough total spaces for Panama bank data in the Routing and Transit Number (RTN) and the Depositor Account Number (DAN) fields on the MBR, only a portion of the full code goes on the MBR. However, the full code must be on ITS.gov , a Department of the Treasury Internet-based program developed by FRBKC for IDD.

E. Process for applying Panama bank data

1. Applying Panama bank data to the MBR

The FBU in Costa Rica keys the complete bank data to ITS.gov . FRBKC then sends a portion of the bank data to SSA through Automated Enrollment (Quick$tart). The data takes at least two days to post to the MBR. SSA's MBR doesn’t have enough spaces in the RTN and DAN fields to accept all of the coding for Panama, so the final 4 digits (from the record on ITS.gov ) are not sent to SSA.

When the cutoff for direct deposit is near, the FBU in Costa Rica codes the full data to ITS.gov and codes the correct data for the MBR. When DIO makes an input for Panama IDD, DIO then faxes the enrollment form or request to the Embassy in Panama City for review, with a note that it has been input to ITS.gov and the MBR.

2. Applying the remainder of the bank data before payment

When a payment for Panama arrives at FRBKC, FRBKC checks it against the information for that beneficiary on ITS.gov If the information matches, FRBKC adds the remaining 4 digits from ITS.gov to complete the account number. If the two sets of information do not match, FRBKC contacts the Embassy in Panama City to resolve the difference.

3. Routing a completed enrollment form

In general, beneficiaries mail completed enrollment forms to the U.S. Embassy in Panama City. The Embassy verifies that the coding is complete and accurate and sends the completed forms to the FBU in San José, Costa Rica, for input. If the beneficiary calls to enroll, or if the form is incomplete, the Embassy completes the form and sends it to the San José FBU.

F. Procedure for coding routing and account numbers for International Direct Deposit (IDD) to Panama

	If you are in…	Follow the instructions in …
1.	the Embassy in Panama City,	GN 02402.342E.1.
2.	the FBU in San José, Costa Rica	GN 02402.342E.2.
3.	DIO, or an FBU that is not in Panama or Costa Rica,	GN 02402.342E.3.
4.	a field office (FO) or regional office (RO) in the U.S., or a consular office other than in Panama or Costa Rica,	GN 02402.342E.4.

1. Instructions for the U.S. Embassy in Panama City, Panama

STEP	ACTION
1.	Review the form for accuracy.
2.	Is the form correctly completed with accurate information? • If yes, go to Step 3. • If no, contact the beneficiary and make any necessary corrections. Go to Step 3.
3.	Send the corrected form to the FBU in San José for input. STOP.

STEP

ACTION

1.

Review the form for accuracy.

2.

Is the form correctly completed with accurate information?

•

If yes, go to Step 3.
•

If no, contact the beneficiary and make any necessary corrections. Go to Step 3.

3.

Send the corrected form to the FBU in San José for input. STOP.

2. Instructions for DIO or the FBU in San José, Costa Rica

IF…	THEN…
1. You receive a completed form to input, and the cutoff date is three or fewer days from today,	• Code the full bank and account data to ITS.gov . • Follow the instructions in GN 02402.342E.3. to code the data to the MBR.
2. You receive a completed form to input, and the cutoff date is at least four days from today,	• Code the full bank and account data to ITS.gov . • ITS sends the information for the MBR to DIO through Automated Enrollment. You do not need to code directly to the MBR.
3. The FBU in Panama City, Panama, has not reviewed the bank and account data,	• Fax the form to the FBU in Panama City, Panama, at the fax number on DOORS. • Send a note to let them know that you have input only to ITS.gov , or to both ITS.gov and the MBR. STOP.

IF…

THEN…

1. You receive a completed form to input, and the cutoff date is three or fewer days from today,

•

Code the full bank and account data to ITS.gov .
•

Follow the instructions in GN 02402.342E.3. to code the data to the MBR.

2. You receive a completed form to input, and the cutoff date is at least four days from today,

•

Code the full bank and account data to ITS.gov .
•

ITS sends the information for the MBR to DIO through Automated Enrollment. You do not need to code directly to the MBR.

3. The FBU in Panama City, Panama, has not reviewed the bank and account data,

•

Fax the form to the FBU in Panama City, Panama, at the fax number on DOORS.
•

Send a note to let them know that you have input only to ITS.gov , or to both ITS.gov and the MBR. STOP.

3. Instructions for an FBU that is not in Panama or Costa Rica

Step	FBU Location
1.	Is the beneficiary’s address on the MBR outside the U.S.? • If yes, go to Step 2. • If no, return the form to the beneficiary. STOP. The MBR doesn’t accept IDD information if the beneficiary has a U.S. address.
2.	Code the Type of Account (on the SSA screen) as checking or savings. If you don’t know the type of account, code it as checking. IMPORTANT: Never code a C for checking or an S for savings as part of the Depositor Account Number on the input screen. A “C” or “S” coded at the start of the Depositor Account Number input causes the payments to reject at FRBNY.
3.	To begin coding the Routing and Transit Number (RTN) field (nine digits total), start with 64, the prefix that SSA and FRBNY have designated for Panamanian IDD.
4.	Code the first six digits of the nine-digit bank code.
5.	Code the U.S. check digit. Obtain the check digit from Title II Interactive Comps.
6.	Code the Depositor Account Number (DAN) field, starting with the last three digits of the bank code.
7.	Code the first 14 digits of the account number.
8.	Are you certified to enter data on ITS.gov ? • If yes, input the full bank and account information to ITS.gov . • If no, fax the completed form to the San José FBU (at the fax number on DOORS) for input to ITS.gov . Let them know you have coded the information to the MBR. STOP.

4. Instructions if you are in an FO or RO in the U.S., or a consular office that is not in Panama or Costa Rica

Step	Procedure
1.	Print and complete the enrollment form for Panama, SSA-1199-OP21, which is available at GN 02402.342G.
2.	Fax the completed form to DIO’s paperless fax number at (410) 597-1800. STOP.

G. Examples of coding Panama direct deposit

1. Example 1

The FBU in San José, Costa Rica, receives a completed enrollment form for a checking account in Panama. The bank data is given as follows:

123456789 123456789012345678

The FBU codes the full information on ITS.gov In three days, the following information appears on the MBR, having been sent from FRBKC through Auto Enroll:

RTN: 641234565

DAN: C12345678901234

(The system has placed the C in the DAN field because the FBU selected checking in Type of Account. The coder should never code a C in the DAN field.)

2. Example 2

Three days before the cutoff date for direct deposit, DIO receives an enrollment form from an individual in Panama. The form contains the following information:

Bank Number	Account Number
(Must have all 9 digits)	(Must have all 18 digits)
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8

The DIO technician begins the RTN field with 64, then codes the first six digits of the Bank Code (123456). Adds the U.S. check digit (5), at the end, making the RTN 641234565.

Begins the DAN field with the final three digits of the bank code (789), and finishes with the first 14 digits of the Account Number, 12345678901234.

The DAN for the MBR is now 78912345678901234.

The technician then codes the full information from the enrollment form to ITS.gov annotates the date of input on the form, and faxes the enrollment form to the U.S. Embassy in Panama City for review of the bank data.

3. Example 3

A retired Federal employee living in Panama who is visiting their son in Minneapolis, MN, goes to a small field office in that area to request direct deposit of his wife’s Social Security, for which they are the representative payee. The service rep prints form SSA-1199-OP21 and asks to complete it. The form is completed by the representative payee.

The service rep faxes the completed form to the paperless fax number at OEIO.

H. References

•

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 02402.342 Coding Panama Bank Data for the Master Beneficiary Record (MBR)