On December 2, 1953 R filed an application for old age social security insurance benefits, alleging a date of birth of August 6, 1888. At the time, Social Security regulations provided that with respect to old age benefits for any month prior to August 1961, a person must have attained age 65 in order to qualify for such benefits.
As proof of his age R had submitted a dimitologion (a Greek birth certificate) which he alleged had been created at or near the time of his birth.
Based on this application R was paid benefits for August 1953 through November 1960.
However, in 1960 social security received evidence showing that R was actually born in 1893. Upon request for further information from R, the agency received the following additional evidence showing R’s date of birth was 1893:
1. A mitroon arrenon from the Ministry of Interior in Athens, Greece, which was a registry of birth maintained for military purposes and which was made shortly after R’s birth. This showed R’s date of birth to be August 1953.
2. Proof that the dimilogion submitted by R at the time of his application was actually created on December 9th, 1953 as a result of a Greek Court decree issued on September 24, 1953.
3. A ship manifest maintained by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service showing that R had entered the U.S. on May 13, 1912 and had stated at the time that he was twenty years old.
4. Applications for reentry permits from 1925 and 1934 in which R had stated he was born on August 6th, 1953.
5. R’s Petition for naturalization in 1945 in which he stated that he was born August 2nd, 1893.
Because of this new information showing R had misrepresented his age, it was held that the agency could recover the benefits that were incorrectly paid to R.
See Social Security Ruling (SSR) 64-2.
This ruling makes me want to learn Greek. I love the sound of those words dimilogion and mitroon arrennon.
This material should not be construed as legal advice for any particular fact situation, but is intended for general informational purposes only. For advice specific to any individual situation, an experienced attorney should be contacted.
