Good Morning,

Recently a question crossed my desk regarding a US Treasury check issued by the Social Security Administration made payable to Person A "FOR" Person B. Naturally, Person A wanted to deposit the funds into an account held in their sole name because Person B was present and said it was ok to do so.

In this case, the two parties were both adults, but we have also seen checks payable this way with Parent "for" Child.

My opinion is that regardless of the relationship or ages of the parties, in these cases, the money is intended for the benefit of Person B and should be deposited to an account that benefits Person B.

Everything I could find on the SSA website seems to indicate that this type of payee designation is intended to denote a Representative Payee arrangement where Person A is acting as Payee for Person B which supports depositing the funds in an a manner benefiting Person B, but there was nothing definitive.

I am hoping to get some input from others as to how they handle things like this, and other opinions (if any) on how that sort of "FOR" designation in a payee line should be interpreted.

I look forward to hearing what you all have to say.

We would require the check be deposited into a Rep Payee account. We would not deposit it into an account in the name of Person A (rep payee) or into an account in the name of Person B only. If they do not have a Rep Payee account, then we would require them to open one with the proper paperwork.

Thank you, Bankwoman. That is my opinion as well. I will stick to my guns!

I concur with Bankwoman, this isn't something I would leave up for debate.

yep, should be going to an account titled something like "john customer as representative payee for minor customer"

A Guide for Represenative Payees

Page 6: We recommend that you hold benefits in a checking or savings account to protect against loss or theft. Also, don’t mix the beneficiary’s funds with your own or other funds.

The agency issuing the payment believes the person on whose behalf the payment is being made suffers from a disability of some sort. The fact that that individual says is okay for the representative payee to deposit the funds into his personal account means nothing.

We have titled our representative payee accounts differently (and incorrectly may times)
over the years. However, finally got the signature card to be signed with only the Rep Payee's signature since that is the only person that is entitled to transact on a Rep Payee account. Even though the funds belong completely to the beneficiary, the beneficiary is not to have access to the funds. It is never acceptable for the Rep Payee to open an account that suggests that the Rep Payee owns the funds in the account.