Social Security cards are made of paper, and many people ruin or beat up the copies they were given years prior. Some try to avoid this by laminating them.
While the idea makes sense, it is not advised that you laminate your card because it could ruin it.
While Social Security cards are one of a person’s most important documents, they’re easily ruined.
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How to keep your Social Security card protected without laminating it
If you laminate your card, it could cause it to become unreadable if it needs to be scanned.
If you need the card and it’s ruined, you may have to wait at least one week until you see a new one.
This means any employment or claims that are relying on your card will have to be paused.
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Ways you can safely protect your card
- Put it in a strong plastic film
- Keep in a documents folder with you other paper documents
- Encapsulate it
A history on what Social Security cards are made of
The flimsy, easily ripped, paper cards we see today aren’t what they were always made of.
That switch was made in 1983, according to AS.
The original material used was cardboard.
Part of it being so easily destroyed is so if it’s dropped, lost, or stolen, it can easily be ruined.
This can help keep your identity safe from being stolen.
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