My husband is a Canadian citizen but worked in the US and began receiving Social Security Disability benefits in 2003 and Social Security benefits in 2010 when he turned 65. As his wife, I just learned that I could receive spousal benefits. I am also a Canadian citizen. I sent in an application for both a Social Security number and Spousal Benefits along with my Canadian passport, my birth certificate and my marriage certificate. According to my postal tracking number the package as received in the Baltimore Social Security office May 3, 2021. As of today I had not heard anything so I called the Niagara Falls office today and apparently there is nothing on file at all. The representative set up a phone appointment with the Baltimore office on July 26 at 10 A M. I am very concerned about getting my passport back. Do you have any suggestions as to how I might expedite this process. Thank you.

Hi. I'm sorry, but I'm not sure what to tell you. Mailing in documents and printed application forms without first dealing with a contact person at Social Security isn't recommended. There are many different Social Security offices in Baltimore, so if you have the address where you sent the documents you may want to try contacting that office directly. I don't think your passport will be lost forever, but it's hard telling where it ended up or how long it may take until someone gets around to returning it to you.

The recommended Social Security office locations for people living in Canada can be found on the following Social Security website: https://www.ssa.gov/foreign/canada.htm. You may want to try dealing with the resident office for your location to see if they can assist you sooner than July 26th.

Best, Jerry