<P> Before 1986 , people often did not obtain a Social Security number until the age of about 14 , since the numbers were used for income tracking purposes , and those under that age seldom had substantial income . The Tax Reform Act of 1986 required parents to list Social Security numbers for each dependent over the age of 5 for whom the parent wanted to claim a tax deduction . Before this act , parents claiming tax deductions were simply trusted not to lie about the number of children they supported . During the first year of the Tax Reform Act , this anti-fraud change resulted in seven million fewer minor dependents being claimed . The disappearance of these dependents is believed to have involved either children who never existed or tax deductions improperly claimed by non-custodial parents . In 1988 , the threshold was lowered to 2 years old , and in 1990 , the threshold was lowered yet again to 1 year old . Today , an SSN is required regardless of the child 's age to receive an exemption . Since then , parents have often applied for Social Security numbers for their children soon after birth ; today , it can be done on the application for a birth certificate . </P>
when did they start assigning social security numbers at birth
1990