Social Security Numbers are issued only to non-immigrants who can produce verification
of lawful need for a number (i.e., if you are being hired to work in the U.S.).
VISITING SCHOLARS/RESEARCHERS WITH DS-2019 FORM
After you arrive in the U.S. you will have to check in at the Office of International
Students and Scholars (OISS) to report your arrival and give us a local address.
You should wait a minimum of 10 days after the day you enter the United States before
applying for a Social Security number. The Santa Barbara Social Security Office
will not be able to verify your arrival at UCSB in the SEVIS immigration database
until 10 days after you enter the U.S. If you apply before the 10 day waiting period,
the Santa Barbara office will then be required to send the application to their
regional office where it will take a minimum of 30 days to issue the number. You
will need to take the following documents to apply:
- Visa document (DS-2019) and I-94 card
- Passport (or your original birth certificate – if you are passport exempt)
- One other form of Identification (driver’s license, student/staff card, health insurance
card, marriage record, etc.)
- Verification of lawful need for a social security number (letter on letterhead from
employer stating you need a Social Security number in order for the employer to
pay you.
The Social Security Office is located in the Paseo Nuevo Mall in downtown Santa
Barbara:
Address : 355 Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Telephone: (805)963-7806
(Mon - Fri: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.)
Click here for Directions
If traveling by bus from UCSB, take bus #24x to the transit center. Walk south (toward
the beach) on Chapala Street until you arrive at Paseo Nuevo Mall. The Social Security
office is opposite the Paseo Neuvo Mall cinemas.