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Paper Checks Ending Soon for Most Federal Payments - msn.com
As of September 30th, 2025, Social Security will no longer be mailing paper checks unless you qualify for a hardship waiver. There are still more than five million people that still receive paper checks from the government. This group consists mainly of seniors, people with disabilities, immigrants, and those without a bank account.
Treasury officials say that reducing paper checks has been a long-standing bipartisan goal, as checks are more likely to be lost, stolen, altered, or returned undeliverable. This move is also expected to save the government millions of dollars as electronic payments are more cost-efficient. It costs approximately fifteen cents per electronic transaction versus fifty cents per paper check.
Congress passed a law in 1990 to phase out paper checks, except for tax refunds. A Social Security spokesperson says they have been proactively contacting people, notifying them of the change. Waivers are available for people with certain hardships, such as living in a remote area, mental impairments, not having a bank account, or being 90 years old or older. If someone has no way to receive an electronic payment, they will continue to get a paper check.
The attempt to end the mailing of paper checks is nothing new. The United States Department of the Treasury started phasing out paper checks in 2011. Effective March 1st, 2013, any new recipients signing up for Social Security had to use direct deposit or request a hardship waiver to receive a paper check, the same form you have to fill out today, Form 1201W.
So why all the fuss now? I personally don’t see anything new except that you now have the option to receive a“Direct Express Debit Card.” Read the full article by Shannon Najamabadi, Taylor Telford on MSN.com here …
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