By Payroll and Entitlements Editorial Staff
The dollar cap on the fee assessment that the SSA charges attorneys for withholding from benefits due claimants the fees that it certifies may be paid to those attorneys increases to $98 in 2021 for successful claims under Titles II and XVI.
Social Security Act §206(d) provides that the assessment be 6.3% of the fee amount withheld for direct payment to attorneys; however, the percentage may be reduced as long as full recovery of the costs of determining and certifying fees to attorneys may be achieved. The amount, in any event, may not exceed 6.3%. In 2021, the percentage will remain at 6.3%.
The full text of the SSA’s announcement was published in the December 5, 2020, issue of the Federal Register (85 Fed. Reg. 78912).
