Is it the law that everyone must have a Social Security card?
Let’s take Paris Hilton (please no jokes) for example. I doubt that she is ever going to work in her life, plus she has one fat trust fund. So why does she need a Social Security card?
Bill Gates’ children (or the next 25 generations) do not have to work if daddy Bill funds them. So, do they need a Social Security card? If daddy pays my way thru Harvard, would not that be taxable income? Sidenote**
I learned in high school that Joe Kennedy gave Jack ( one million dollars when Jack turned 18 years old (in 1935, which is probably 5-10 million today). I will say that I read that Jack was still buming money from his dad after he became President. Jack only needed a SS card because he did have jobs (military, politics). What if he just decided to sit on his ass, be lazy and lived in Hyannisport? Sidenote*
So, there is a long history of rich kids who do not have to work for the rest of their lives (unless you wanted to), so why have one? I only have one because I had to have one to work (as a teen in the 1980s), now the government wants all babies to have one. Why? This was long before 9/11.
I’m not American, but my impression is that the Social Security card works like some sort of substitute national ID card. Even if it’s not mandatory, it seems to be used for a lot of identification purposes that don’t have all that much to do with the social security system itself (see [url=http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_154.html)Why does my old social security card say it can’t be used as ID?, so you might want to have one tom make life easier even if you have money to burn anyway.
I’m sure you won’t keep your money hidden in a mattress. You’ll still have interest and dividend income coming in, which is taxable. If Daddy handles it all and you’re a minor, you still need a SSN to be claimed as a dependent on his taxes. And you can only Gift so much money to someone before it becomes taxable. Bottom line, if your family is that rich, you will have some need to be an entity with the IRS.
Say I was Paris Hilton’s mother (shudder…). I would claim her as a dependant on my taxes. I must indicate her Social Security number on my tax forms to claim her as a dependant.
I imagine also in order to be on a fabulous television show, Miss Hilton had to join an actor’s union. And in order to do so, she would have to use her SSN. As Schnitte says above, in the US, a SSN is close to a personal identifier.
This is completely off-topic, but Bill Gates apparently does not intend to leave all his wealth to his kids. Most of it is going to charity, and he’s already started giving away huge sums. According to his statements, he intends to leave each child a few million, which is substantial wealth but nowhere near the billions he’s acquired. His kids will have a great head start, but they won’t have the unspendable wealth that funded generations of idle rich descended from some of the early American dynasties.
To answer the OP, unfortunately Schnitte is correct. Legally, the SSN cannot be used as an identifier for anything other than federal income and SSN purposes, but it has become a universal ID for all practical purposes. Credit reports, many university IDs, and other miscellaneous records use SSN even though you cannot be legally required to give it up for those purposes, and many mundane activities will be unreasonably difficult if you don’t have an SSN. Just try withholding your SSN from your bank or university on the grounds that it is illegal for them to require it. Most will eventually issue a non-SSN identifier, but many will simply refuse service (they can’t require that you give it up, but they aren’t required to provide service to you either).
The “social security” card’s primary function isn’t to hook you into the social secuiirty system.
It’s your taxpayer ID card, and I’d bet that despite the best tax-avoidance experts money can buy, young Paris will end up handing some serious loot over to the IRS over the course of her cushy life. They’re not gonna let her not enroll in the tax-paying system.
I know of a lawyer in an area of Chicago and it has a lot of Polish, Czech and Slovaks. He told me that he sees a lot of older woman that immigrated from Poland or Czechoslovakia with their husbads and they don’t work. Some have been here 20 years without working and so they never have a SS#. Then their husbands die and they are forced to get a SS# and it is harder to get one.
It appears that you don’t need a SSN if you don’t work or have income of any kind. However, you need one if you are claimed as a dependent for someone else’s tax. Of course, rich kids almost always have taxable income and would therefore need a SSN. I found this interesting summary:
"The IRS says US Citizens who receive income are required to have an SSN and employers are required to report income to the IRS using the SSN. The written laws on this point are not very clear, and many people who have read the law feel that the IRS is on shaky legal ground. However, it’s quite important to realize that your employer is quite likely to believe the IRS when they say it is required over your claims to have read the law and reached your own conclusions.
There are people who claim, based on nuances of the texts of the laws that these IRS claims are incorrect and illegal. They point to a single court case. As far as I can tell, these claims have not been upheld more recently. The IRS continues to prosecute and harrass those who attempt to resist having their incomes reported. I give pointers to these claims, not because I believe them, but because I can’t disprove them. Caveat Lector: the IRS is willing to throw you in jail for violating their interpretation of the laws. They are willing to shoot you for resisting arrest. They have a separate court system, which follows a different set of rules and procedures. Be sure that you understand the potential consequences, and that you are willing to pay the price before you enter this fight.
Seeking agreement and moral support, not all of the people propounding these views will inform you fully of the potential consequences of joining their fight. "
You may want to search the threads on this. I amswered a similar question after contacting the SSA, after taking around three weeks and several emails back and forth with the SSA because they were unable to answer the question.
To answer your question - No, you are not required by law to possess a social security number. However, you will need to cosider living by barter or some other simple means.
If Paris Hilton has a trust fund she has a social security number. The IRS uses it to track her funds.
Bill Gates’ kids will have social security numbers if they want any money after daddy dies. The IRS will use them to track the inheritence.
In order to file a tax return as an individual, you need a SSN. If you own income producing investments, you must identify the owners SSN or Tax ID (if a corporation). Otherwise, the dividend payer must withhold a portion of the dividends for tax payments.