Social Security SSI claims approved since May 4, 2026 all get an automated check of the applicant’s bank accounts, even when no account is reported, Social Security policy says By Brian Lund, Every Supplemental Security Income claim approved on or after May 4, 2026 now gets an automated check of the applicant’s bank accounts, whether or not the applicant reports owning one. Social Security’s policy message says verification is “required regardless of the claimant’s liquid resource or FI account ownership allegations.” The step comes before the agency adjudicates and pays the claim. For people applying for SSI, the practical question is what to have ready. The check works with the account information an applicant gives and with a financial permission the applicant signs. Social Security’s instruction says that when a claimant supplies alternative documentation for all alleged balances across the full period, staff are not to delay the decision. What changed this year: Social Security and Medicare change every year, and nobody sends you a memo. The Retirement Money Brief breaks down what changed and what to do. What did Social Security change on May 4? The change is spelled out in Emergency Message EM-25046 REV, titled “Expansion of the Financial Institution (FI) Account Verification Requirement to All Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Claim Allowances, Initial Claim Reopenings, and Appeal Reversals Establishing Initial Eligibility.” The page shows effective dates beginning April 27, 2026, and the expansion takes hold for allowances processed on or after May 4, 2026. Before the expansion, the requirement covered only SSI Aged allowances processed on or after August 1, 2025. Now it reaches aged, disability and blindness claims alike.