How to Fax Form SSA-827 to Social Security — Medical Records Authorization
Form SSA-827 authorizes doctors, hospitals, schools, and other sources to release your medical and education records to the Social Security Administration and the state Disability Determination Services reviewing your disability claim. Because a disability decision depends on those records, getting a signed SSA-827 to the office working your claim quickly matters. The form is faxed to the field office or DDS handling the case, and it carries sensitive medical and Social Security number data.
Does the Social Security Administration accept a fax?
Yes — SSA-827 is routinely accepted by fax at the Social Security field office or the state Disability Determination Services office handling a disability claim. Faxing the signed authorization lets the DDS begin requesting your medical evidence sooner, which keeps the disability review moving instead of waiting on mailed paper.
Finding the official fax number
The fax number is the one for the specific office working your claim — the SSA field office or the DDS examiner assigned to you. Take it from the letter or examiner contact information you received, or use the Social Security field office locator on ssa.gov to find the office serving your area. Do not send to a general number; SSA-827 belongs with the office reviewing your case.
What to include on every page
- Your full name, date of birth, and Social Security number as they appear on your claim
- The claim or case number the SSA or DDS assigned, if you have received one
- Your signature and the date, since an unsigned or undated SSA-827 cannot be honored
- A witness or representative signature if you signed by mark, as the form requires
- A brief cover sheet marking the fax confidential and naming the office or examiner
How to fax Form SSA-827 (Authorization to Disclose Information to the Social Security Administration) to the Social Security Administration
- 1Review the signed SSA-827 for your name, date of birth, SSN, and a current signature and date
- 2Identify the SSA field office or DDS examiner working your claim and their fax number
- 3Use the ssa.gov field office locator or your claim letter to confirm the correct destination
- 4Scan or export the signed authorization as a clear PDF and add a confidential cover sheet
- 5Log in to Send FAX Mail, upload the PDF, enter the verified office fax number, and send
- 6Save the dated confirmation with your claim file as proof of when the authorization was sent
Confirming it arrived
Send FAX Mail returns a dated confirmation the instant the authorization reaches the office's fax line — keep it with your disability claim records. Once the DDS has your signed SSA-827, it begins requesting records from the sources you listed, which drives the medical evidence gathering, so the confirmation shows when you provided the authorization if the claim timeline is ever reviewed.
What’s current · as of July 2026
- HIPAA large-breach reporting threshold
- 500+ individuals — reported to HHS OCR without unreasonable delay Source: HHS Office for Civil Rights
- HIPAA documentation retention period
- 6 years from creation or last-effective date Source: HHS — HIPAA Administrative Requirements (45 CFR 164.316)
Recent updates
Federal interoperability rules keep pushing healthcare past the fax machine
CMS has advanced a series of interoperability rules that press hospitals, payers, and providers toward electronic data exchange and standardized claims attachments. The direction of travel is clear: paper and analog fax workflows are being replaced by digital transmission that carries an auditable record — which is exactly what a cloud fax with delivery confirmation provides for offices not yet on a full EHR pipeline.
CMS →Federal agencies still write fax into new rules and notices
The Federal Register — the daily journal of U.S. federal rulemaking — regularly publishes rules and notices that reference fax as an accepted or required submission channel for filings with agencies like the IRS, SSA, and CMS. That is why fax remains a live requirement for many official forms even as electronic portals expand.
Federal Register →Healthcare breach reporting keeps document handling under scrutiny
Ongoing reporting on HIPAA breaches and OCR settlements underscores how much scrutiny falls on how medical documents are stored, sent, and received. Sending records through a controlled, access-logged channel rather than an unmanaged machine reduces the mishandling risks that show up repeatedly in breach analyses.
HIPAA Journal →
Faxing Form SSA-827 (Authorization to Disclose Information to the Social Security Administration) to the Social Security Administration — FAQ
A disability claim is decided on medical and sometimes school records held by outside providers, and privacy law bars those sources from releasing records without your consent. SSA-827 is that consent — it lets the SSA and the state DDS collect the evidence they need to evaluate whether you qualify.
Send it to whichever office is actually handling your claim — the Social Security field office or the DDS examiner assigned to you. Their fax number is on your claim correspondence, or you can find your field office through the locator on ssa.gov. A general SSA line would not reach your examiner.
Because SSA-827 exposes your Social Security number and authorizes release of health records, add a cover sheet marking the fax confidential, double-check the destination number before sending, and keep the confirmation. Sending straight to the assigned office, rather than a shared or guessed line, limits who sees the sensitive data.
The Disability Determination Services uses the signed authorization to request records from the doctors, hospitals, and schools you identified, then weighs that evidence in deciding the claim. Returning the form promptly matters because the record requests cannot begin until the office has your authorization on file.
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