Courtesy Copy of CEO Letter to Claimant

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
Refer To: [Claimant Name]

Office of Hearings Operations
[Local Hearing Office address]
Tel: [Local Office Phone]
Fax: [Local office Fax]
[Notice Date]

COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Hearing Changes
[Representative Name]
[Representative Address]
Due to the COVID-19 national public health emergency, we are currently conducting hearings
only by telephone, with the claimant’s consent. To determine whether a claimant consents to a
telephone hearing, we have been calling the claimant’s representative pursuant to our COVID
Enhanced Outreach process. However, we are updating our outreach process for cases in which
the claimant is represented. We will now provide the enclosed COVID-19 Telephone Hearing
Agreement Form to the representative instead of calling the representative. The claimant or
representative will indicate on the form if the claimant agrees to a hearing by telephone, and if
so, to provide phone numbers for the hearing. If the claimant is unable to sign the form due to
COVID-19 precautions, the representative may sign in lieu of the claimant. We will not
schedule, or proceed with a hearing by telephone until we receive the claimant’s consent. We
also will accept a verbal agreement to appear by telephone. To provide a verbal agreement,
please call us at the number in the heading of this notice. If the claimant does not consent to
appear by telephone, we will not schedule the hearing at this time, or if already scheduled, we
will postpone the hearing until we can offer another option, such as a hearing by video
teleconferencing or in person, as appropriate.
Waiver of Timely Mailed Notice of Hearing
We generally must mail a notice of hearing at least 75 days, or an amended notice of hearing at
least 20 days, before the date of the hearing. If circumstances prevent us from mailing this
notice timely, we cannot proceed with the hearing unless the claimant waives his or her right to a
timely mailed notice of hearing or amended notice of hearing. As applicable, we will mail a
Waiver of Timely Written Notice of Hearing form for completion.
How to Submit Documents to Us
In our efforts to maintain service during the COVID-19 national public health emergency, we are
emphasizing electronic options for doing business with us when possible to make it more
convenient to the public and to reduce paper mail and faxes in our hearing offices. Registered
representatives with a recognized notice of appointment in a case should continue to use the
“Upload New File” function available when viewing a claimant’s electronic folder in
Appointed Representative Services (ARS) to upload documents, including the COVID-19
Telephone Hearing Agreement Form or the Waiver of Timely Written Notice of Hearing form.

This process does not require a barcode. Alternatively, representatives can also submit
documents with a barcode using the “Send Individual Response” function in ARS and Electronic
Records Express (ERE). Registered representatives should use these methods to submit any
documents to us electronically, whenever possible.
If a representative is not registered, he or she can use a physical fax machine or his or her own
e-fax solution to send documents, including the completed COVID-19 Telephone Hearing
Agreement Form or the Waiver of Timely Written Notice of Hearing form. Due to our
modernization efforts, sending documents to us via fax will now deliver a secure, electronic copy
and route it to the specific hearing office’s designated email inbox. To submit documents
electronically via fax, simply use the toll-free fax number with area code “833” assigned to the
servicing hearing office, included in the header of this notice. For a specific hearing office’s
designated fax number, visit https://www.ssa.gov/appeals/ho_locator.html.
For appointed representatives who do not have direct access to the electronic file, we can provide
an encrypted copy of the electronic file by email. Please call us at the number in the heading of
this notice to provide an email address for receipt of the electronic file.
Submitting the Notice of Appointment Electronically
Representatives who are not yet appointed to a case but are registered through ARS can use the
“Contact OHO Office” function to send a one-way communication, including non-case
information or the written notice of appointment, such as the SSA-1696, to a designated email
box for the servicing hearing office. We highly recommend that any representative who will
appear at a claimant’s hearing but is not yet appointed in the case submit appointment
documentation before the hearing.
For an appointment of representative to be valid, the claim(s) file must contain a completed and
properly signed notice of appointment, which can be on form SSA-1696, Claimant’s
Appointment of Representative, or another written document that meets the requirements of 20
CFR 404.1707 and 416.1507. Form SSA-1696 is accessible on the Social Security website at
https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-1696.pdf. Additional information about use of the “Contact
OHO Office” tool can be found at https://www.ssa.gov/ar.
During the COVID-19 public health emergency, we are temporarily permitting claimant
signatures on a notice of appointment that do not meet the standards listed in GN 03910.040
(e.g., signatures that appear to be electronic or a digitized image of a handwritten signature) with
additional verbal confirmation by the claimant about his or her intent to appoint the
representative and electronic signature. A fee agreement with a claimant signature identical to
the one on the written notice of appointment may be accepted if it is submitted simultaneously
with notice of appointment.
If You Have Any Questions
If you have any questions, please contact your servicing hearing office via the contact
information in the heading of this notice.

Social Security Administration
cc: [Claimant Name]
[Claimant Address]
[OBO Name]
[OBO Address]
Enclosure(s):
Telephone Hearing Agreement Form