For those of you who have been following along (and possibly lighting candles for us), a quick update on our Social Security Suspension Saga.
After a full 90 minutes of redialing, followed by five minutes of actual ringing (during which I refused to hang up on principle), I finally reached a human being at the Federal Benefits Unit in Madrid.
And I have to say, she was lovely.
She was able to locate the issue, clear the hold codes, and generally restore a bit of sanity. According to her, the problem actually originated in Portugal. Supposedly someone there had been trying to contact us, though I politely pointed out that:
- We still have the same email addresses
- We still have our Portuguese phone numbers
- And we haven’t exactly been hiding
So, unless they were attempting contact by smoke signal, carrier pigeon, or telepathy, I’m not sure what method they were using.
In any case, the good news is:
- We’re cleared up.
- The case has been handed back to Baltimore.
- We will receive any missed payments in full.
The bad news?
Only the main SSA office in Baltimore can actually turn the payments back on.
The FBU submitted the case as expedited, but even so, the resolution could take up to 60 days. And no one – not SSA Customer Service, not FBU Madrid, not the ghost of FDR – can take any further action unless it goes the full two months with no resolution.
So, we wait. Again.
But at least this time we have a direct cause, a fix in motion, and the distinct feeling that someone, somewhere, knows we exist. And, we don’t need to make the slog up to Madrid for an in-person meeting, so I’ll take the win.
Stay tuned for Part Three: Return of the Payment (hopefully not 60 Days Later).