Can Social Security Numbers Really Start With A '0'?

Social Security numbers are simply a part of life for anyone working in the United States. While intrinsically attached to working and retiring in America, these numbers are also a part of our identity. Your Social Security Number (SSN), usually assigned shortly after birth, stays with you for life (there are only a few rare exceptions that allow you to change your SSN) and is used to track your earnings and check your eligibility for Social Security benefits, but these numbers are not always clearly understood. One question that often arises is whether or not it is possible for this nine-digit number to start with a "0." Well, as it turns out, while these nine-digit numbers don't commonly start with "0" this opening number is entirely possible.

There are a few things to note about how that situation may come about, but to understand these numbers a bit better, it helps to first know a bit about their history. The Social Security card itself is actually less than 100 years old. The first SSN was issued in 1936 following the passage of the Social Security Act in 1935 and was introduced as a means of uniquely identifying U.S. workers and allowing employers to report earnings so those workers would be able to qualify for Social Security benefits. In the entirety of its history, the SSN has remained a nine-digit number that follows a uniform format and to this day it continues to be used primarily for its original purpose.

Now that we've established that an SSN can, indeed, start with a "0," it is important to be aware of potential problems with that format and what "0" opening numbers you won't see. Your SSN is entered into a computer or on paper numerous times throughout your life — filing taxes, starting a new job, and opening a life insurance policy are just a few of the many situations in life when providing your SSN will be required. While this is not inherently a problem, there is always a risk that a first number of "0" could be omitted during data entry, which could create confusion in confirming your identity.

While your number may start with a "0" you won't be getting a number that has three of them in a row, at least not in the opening sequence of number. SSNs are always a combination of nine digits in a three-two-four, or XXX-YY-ZZZZ format. With more than 500 million numbers issued to date, and more than 300 million possible nine-digit numbers still available to assign, there is definitely a probability that occasionally some SSNs will feature two or three of the same digit appearing consecutively. However, that will not happen in the opening sequence with multiple "0" digits. According to a Social Security Administration Fact Sheet on SSNs, consecutive 0s cannot and will not appear in the first three numbers of an SSN.

The different elements of your Social Security number have different meanings, and you may not be aware of what those meanings are. Once upon a time, Social Security numbers were issued based on the geographic location of your birth, specifically, the first three numbers, with lower numbers being assigned to babies born on the East Coast and higher numbers assigned to babies born on the West Coast. What this means is that you could get a general idea of where someone was born based on the digits their Social Security number starts with. For anyone whose card was issued before 2011, that still stands true, but in 2011 the Social Security Administration made some changes to the way these numbers are issued, and geographic location was one of the hot topics of this change.

In 2011 the process of assigning SSNs was randomized, so anyone can have a number starting with any number, zero through eight. SSNs won't start with the number "9", something the Employment Security Commission explains as being related to the Individual Taxpayer Identification Number. These ITINs, which are also assigned by the Social Security Administration nine digits long just like the SSNs, do start with "9", so to avoid confusing ITINs with SSNs, they won't have the opportunity to start with the same number.