Social Security Numbers

The University of Texas at Austin requires employees to provide their Social Security Number (SSN) when an offer of employment is extended.  Payroll Services is legally required to use the SSN to report employment taxes that have been withheld.

If an SSN is not provided at the time of hire, a Temporary SSN will be assigned.  Employees are required to provide their SSN as soon as possible. 

Additional information is available for nonresident employees who have not yet been issued an SSN.

Providing a Copy of Your Social Security Card

From time to time, a member of Payroll Services may request that you provide a copy of your Social Security Number card.  This is only done when absolutely necessary and usually when external verification is required.  Here are some examples of when a copy may be requested:

Legal Name Change – Payroll Services is required to use your legal name as presented on your SSN card when reporting employment taxes withheld and on your W-2 form.  If your legal name is changed in Workday, you will be asked to present a copy of your SSN card for verification.  You can change your legal name directly in Workday, via the Change My Legal Name task.  Once the name change has been entered, you will receive a To Do step to provide a copy of your SSN card to Payroll Services.

SSA Verification Mismatch – The university performs a Social Security Number Verification with the Social Security Administration (SSA) upon hire.  If the SSA reports that the name or SSN we reported does not match the information in their system, you will be asked to present a copy of your SSN card for correction and further validation.

SSN Mismatch – If the SSN entered into Workday was mistyped and needs to be corrected, you will be asked to present a copy of your SSN card for validation. You can correct your SSN directly in Workday, via the Change My Government ID task.  Once the SSN change has been entered, you will receive a To Do step to provide a copy of your SSN card to Payroll Services.

TRS Request– For employees enrolled in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), an account is created in their system that is tied to the employee’s SSN.  After the account has been established, TRS may require that we provide a copy of the employee’s SSN card if changes are needed to the legal name or SSN.

To securely provide a copy of your SSN card, you may upload a copy into a secure UT Box folder that is accessible only by Payroll Services staff. Alternately, you may fax a copy of the SSN card to (512) 471-1299. Copies of SSN cards and other SSN information should NEVER be sent over email.

Filing a U.S. Tax Return

Additional information on filing a U.S. tax return without a permanent Social Security Number is available in askUS.

If a W-2 Form is issued without an SSN, Tax Services will issue a W-2 Correction Form with the SSN included once the permanent SSN is entered into Workday (as long as this update is made within one tax year).

Last updated 08/16/2021