Social Security Number and Card for an Adopted Child

The timing choice: before finalization or after

The Social Security Administration (SSA) states the timing choice in one paragraph in its publication Social Security Numbers for Children. SSA can assign an adopted child a Social Security number before the adoption is complete, but you may want to wait until the adoption is finalized. Then, you can apply for the number using the child's new name, with your name as parent.

Waiting matters because the card and the record carry names. Applying after finalization lets the application use the child's new legal name and list the adoptive parent from the start, rather than applying under a prior name and then correcting the record. The SSA paragraph does not state a deadline for applying, and this guide states none.

If you want to claim the child for tax purposes while the adoption is still pending, SSA directs you to contact the Internal Revenue Service for Form W-7A, Application for Taxpayer Identification Number for Pending U.S. Adoptions. That form is an IRS form for a pending adoption. It is not an SSA form, and this guide does not describe its fields or filing route, because no IRS page was opened for this guide.

Three requests, kept apart

SSA's application, Form SS-5 (Application for a Social Security Card), is used for an original number, a new (different) number, a replacement card, and a correction to the electronic record. Those are distinct requests, and the documents and the result differ.

This guide verifies the first two tracks on the primary pages opened for it. The third track is addressed separately below, with its limits stated plainly. Do not assume that a corrected card means a new number was assigned, or that a new number was assigned because the name changed.

Original number for a child who never had one

No matter where you apply, SSA requires original documents proving the child's U.S. citizenship, age, and identity, and documents proving the applicant's identity and relationship to the child. All documents must be either originals or copies certified by the issuing agency. SSA states that it cannot accept photocopies or notarized copies of documents.

The application can be started online through SSA's Social Security Number and Card application and completed in a local Social Security office or card center. If you are not able to apply online, you can fill out and print Form SS-5. Anyone age 12 or older who requests an original Social Security number must appear in person for an interview, even if a parent or guardian will sign the application on the child's behalf.

SSA states that it will mail the child's number and card as soon as it has all of the child's information and has verified the child's documents. No day count for mailing is stated in the children publication, and none is stated here. A separate SSA page for a noncitizen child states a two-week timing rule for in-person applications generally; that timing is stated in the noncitizen guide, not carried into this guide, because it comes from a different SSA page for a different applicant group.

Citizenship documents

SSA lists only certain documents as proof of U.S. citizenship for a child:

• U.S. birth certificate.
• U.S. consular report of birth.
• U.S. passport, valid and unexpired.
• Certificate of Naturalization or Certificate of Citizenship.

Noncitizens are directed by SSA to a different publication, Social Security Numbers for Noncitizens (Publication No. 05-10096). This guide does not carry that publication's document lists into the adopted-child track, except where the foreign-born track below expressly uses them.

Age documents

For a child born in the United States, present the child's birth certificate. If the child does not have a birth certificate, SSA states it may be able to accept a religious record made before the age of 5 showing the date of birth, a U.S. hospital record of birth, or a U.S. passport or passport card.

For a child born outside the United States, present the child's foreign birth certificate. The child may already have it or be able to get a copy within 10 business days. If the child cannot get it, SSA states it may be able to accept the child's Certificate of Birth Abroad (FS-545), Certificate of Report of Birth (DS-1350), Consular Report of Birth Abroad (FS-240), Certificate of Naturalization, or passport. Those are the documents SSA lists for age in the foreign-born case. This guide does not add a separate foreign-adoption procedure, because no SSA page opened for this guide states one distinct from these tracks.

Identity documents for the child

An acceptable identity document must be current (not expired) and show the child's name, identifying information, and preferably a recent photograph. SSA states it generally can accept a non-photo identity document if it has enough information to identify the child, such as the child's name and age, date of birth, or parents' names. SSA prefers to see the child's unexpired U.S. passport. If that document is not available, SSA states it may accept:

• An unexpired, valid state-issued non-driver identification card.
• An adoption decree.
• A certified copy of a medical record (doctor, clinic, or hospital).
• A religious record.
• A certified school record showing the child's name and age or date of birth, for the current or prior year.
• A school identification card showing the child's name and either a photograph, age, or date of birth, for the current or prior year.

The adoption decree appears in that identity list. It does not, by itself, prove citizenship or age. Each element still needs its own evidence.

The applicant's identity and relationship

If the applicant is a U.S. citizen, SSA will ask to see a U.S. driver's license, state-issued non-driver identification card, or U.S. passport as proof of identity. If those specific documents are not available, SSA asks to see other documents, including a Certificate of U.S. Citizenship, a Certificate of Naturalization, a school identification card, a health insurance card (not a Medicare card), a U.S. military identification card, an employee identification card, or a life insurance policy, each with the identifying details SSA specifies.

SSA may use one document for two purposes. For example, the child's passport may serve as proof of both citizenship and identity, or the birth certificate as proof of age and citizenship. However, at least two separate documents must be provided.

SSA may also ask for documents showing custody of, or responsibility for, the child. On the noncitizen-child document page, SSA lists examples including court custody documentation, being listed as the parent in SSA records, a letter from a state social service agency placing the child in the household, school records indicating responsibility for the child, and a rental agreement listing the child in the household. That list is stated here only as the custody-document examples on that page; the children publication itself states the requirement more generally as documents proving the applicant's identity and relationship to the child.

Corrected card under the new name

Where the child already has a number, the adoption is reflected by correcting the SSA record and issuing a card showing the new name. The SSA document page lists the documents for correcting specific fields:

A final adoption decree is therefore expressly listed for correcting a parent's name and for correcting a date of birth where the decree shows the information was taken from the original birth certificate. An amended or corrected birth certificate is also the basis for a name change in SSA's policy pages: the new name shown on the birth certificate is evidence of the new name, while an amended or corrected birth certificate is not by itself evidence of identity, so additional identity evidence is always required. Do not file a corrected-card request with only the amended birth certificate and no identity document.

Replacement-card limits also apply in this area, with an exception stated by SSA: a person is limited to 3 replacement cards in a year and 10 during a lifetime, but legal name changes and other exceptions do not count toward these limits. Changes in noncitizen status that require card updates may also not count. This guide states the exception as SSA states it and does not extend it to any other situation.

New (different) number: what is not verified

SSA's public pages opened for this guide do not state the conditions under which an adopted child who already has a number will be assigned a new, different number. The children publication states only that SSA can assign a number before the adoption is complete and that waiting until finalization lets the parent apply in the child's new name. It does not state that every adopted child receives a new number, and it does not list conditions for one.

Secondary summaries found during research disagree with each other: some state that a new number is available on request for adopted children, while others state older conditions under which a new number was denied. Those summaries are not primary sources, and neither version is stated in this guide as a verified fact. Do not promise a family a new number on the basis of this guide. Ask SSA directly whether a new (different) number will be assigned in the child's case, and keep the corrected-card request separate from that question.

Foreign-born adopted child

Two tracks cover a foreign-born adopted child, depending on the child's status, and they must not be merged:

• If the child is a U.S. citizen, the citizenship and age documents are those listed above, including the Consular Report of Birth Abroad (FS-240), the Certificate of Birth Abroad (FS-545), and the Certificate of Naturalization where applicable.
• If the child is a noncitizen, the immigration-status documents on SSA's noncitizen-child page apply, including the I-551 (Lawful Permanent Resident Card or Machine Readable Immigrant Visa), the I-766 Employment Authorization Document, and the I-94 Arrival/Departure Record or admission stamp in the unexpired foreign passport, plus the F-1/M-1 I-20 and J-1/J-2 DS-2019 where those statuses apply.

SSA's noncitizen-child page also states the general rule that only noncitizens who have permission to work from the Department of Homeland Security can apply for a Social Security number, with a separate nonwork route where a federal or state law requires a number for a benefit or service. That rule and its nonwork exception are stated in full in the noncitizen guide. They are not repeated as the adopted-child rule here, because the adopted-child publications state the citizenship, age, and identity evidence instead.

Cost

There is no charge for a Social Security number and card. SSA states this directly: "There's no charge for issuing an SSN and card." No fee, processing charge, or expedite fee is stated in this guide, because SSA states none. SSA also warns that anyone contacting a family to charge for getting a number or card should be reported to the SSA Office of Inspector General hotline.

For a newborn's card through the hospital birth-registration process, see Social Security Card for a Newborn. For the other federal identity documents, see the Federal Identity Documents by Situation directory.

Source

Sources: Social Security Administration, Social Security Numbers for Children (Publication No. 05-10023, April 2026), ssa.gov; Social Security Administration, Learn what documents you will need to get a Social Security Card, ssa.gov (noncitizen-child section for custody and immigration-status document examples, and correction document lists); Social Security Administration POMS RM 10212.095 (name change based on an amended or corrected birth certificate; new name shown on the birth certificate is evidence of the new name; an amended or corrected birth certificate is not evidence of identity). Facts verified 2026-11-03. Omissions and limits: the conditions for assigning a new (different) number to an adopted child who already has a number were not verified on any primary page opened for this guide and are not stated; no mailing day count from the children publication is stated; no separate foreign-adoption SSN procedure distinct from the citizenship and noncitizen tracks above was verified and none is stated; no IRS Form W-7A filing detail is stated. No fee is stated because SSA states there is no charge.

This page explains how the process works and what the official rules say. It is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute about your specific situation, talk to the Social Security Administration.