(a) Who will be sent a statement. Unless one of the conditions in paragraph (b) of this section applies to you, we will send you, without request, a statement of earnings and benefit estimates if:

(1) You have a social security account number;

(2) You have wages or net earnings from self-employment on your social security record;

(3) You have attained age 25 or older, as explained in paragraph (c)(3) of this section; and

(4) We can determine your current mailing address.

(b) Who will not be sent a statement. We will not send you an unrequested statement if any of the following conditions apply:

(1) You do not meet one or more of the conditions of paragraph (a) of this section;

(2) Our records contain a notation of your death;

(3) You are entitled to benefits under title II of the Act;

(4) We have already sent you a statement, based on your request, in the fiscal year we selected you to receive an unrequested statement;

(5) We cannot obtain your address (see paragraph (c)(2) of this section); or

(6) We are correcting your social security earnings record when we select you to receive a statement of earnings and benefit estimates.

(c) The selection and mailing process. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, we will use the following process for sending statements without requests:

(1) Selection. We will use our records of assigned social security account numbers to identify individuals to whom we will send statements.

(2) Addresses. If you are living in one of the 50 States or the District of Columbia, our current procedure is to get your address from individual taxpayer files of the Internal Revenue Service, as authorized by section 6103(m)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 6103(m)(7)). If you live in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, or Guam, we will get your address from the taxpayer records of the place in which you live.

(3) Age. If you have attained age 60 on or before September 30, 1995, we will send you a statement by that date. If you attain age 60 on or after October 1, 1995 but no later than September 30, 1999, we will send you a statement in the fiscal year in which you attain age 60, or in an earlier year as resources allow. Also, we will inform you that an annually updated statement is available on request. Beginning October 1, 1999, we will send you a statement each year in which you are age 25 or older.

(4) Ineligible. If we do not send you a statement because one or more conditions in paragraph (b) of this section apply when you are selected, we will send a statement in the first appropriate fiscal year thereafter in which you do qualify.

(5) Undeliverable. If the statement we send you is returned by the Post Office as undeliverable, we will not remail it.

(d) Contents of statement of earnings and benefit estimates. To prepare your statement and estimate your benefits, we will use the earnings in our records. If there are earnings recorded for you in either of the two years before the year in which you are selected to get a statement, we will use the later of these earnings as your earnings for the current year and future years when we estimate your benefits. In addition, if you do not already have the required credits (quarters of coverage) to be eligible to receive benefits, we will use that last recorded earnings amount to estimate up to eight additional credits (four per year) for last year and the current year if they are not yet entered on your record. If there are no earnings entered on your record in either of the two years preceding the year of selection, we will not estimate current and future earnings or additional credits for you. Your earnings and benefit estimates statement will contain the following information:

(1) Your social security taxed earnings as shown by our records as of the date we select you to receive a statement;

(2) An estimate of the social security and medicare hospital insurance taxes paid on your earnings (although we do not maintain such tax information);

(3) The number of credits, i.e., quarters of coverage, not exceeding 40 (as described in paragraph (d) of this section), that you have for both social security and medicare hospital insurance purposes, and the number you need to be eligible for social security benefits and also for medicare hospital insurance coverage;

(4) A statement as to whether you meet the credit (quarters of coverage) requirements, as described in subpart B of this part, for each type of social security benefit when we prepare the benefit estimates, and also whether you are eligible for medicare hospital insurance coverage;

(5) Estimates of the monthly retirement (old-age), disability, dependents' and survivors' insurance benefits potentially payable on your record if you meet the credits (quarters of coverage) requirements. If you are age 50 or older, the estimates will include the retirement (old-age) insurance benefits you could receive at age 62 (or your current age if you are already over age 62), at full retirement age (currently age 65 to 67, depending on your year of birth) or at your current age if you are already over full retirement age, and at age 70. If you are under age 50, instead of estimates, we may provide a general description of the benefits (including auxiliary benefits) that are available upon retirement;

(6) A description of the coverage provided under the medicare program;

(7) A reminder of your right to request a correction of your earnings record; and

(8) A remark that an annually updated statement is available on request.

[61 FR 18077, Apr. 24, 1996]