Social Security and taxes - is withholding automatic from monthly SS checks?

Social Security doesn't automatically withhold taxes from your benefit payments, unless you specifically request it. Only about 40% of SS beneficiaries end up owing taxes on their benefits, depending on your total income. If you want withholding, you need to file Form W-4V (Voluntary Withholding Request) and you can choose to have 7%, 10%, 12% or 22% withheld. Whether your benefits are taxable depends on your combined income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + half of your SS benefits). For individuals with combined income between $25,000-$34,000, up to 50% of benefits may be taxable. Above $34,000, up to 85% may be taxable. Different thresholds apply for married couples filing jointly.

Ur wrong abt the numbers. I think its $32000 for married now. And nobody gets ALL their SS taxed, just part of it. I had same question when I retired.

I've been collecting SS for 3 years now and I DO have taxes taken out every month. I filled out that form they mentioned (W-4V) when I first applied because my financial advisor recommended it. Honestly, it's just easier for me to have a smaller check every month than deal with a big tax bill or complicated quarterly payments. Just my preference though!!

I had the WORST experience with this last year. No one told me SS could be taxable and I didn't have anything withheld. Got hit with a $4,200 tax bill in April! If your total income is over $44K (married) or $34K (single), definitely consider withholding or quarterly payments. Learn from my mistake!

To answer your specific question about whether to request withholding versus paying quarterly estimated taxes, it really depends on your overall financial situation. If you have other sources of income with withholding (like your pension), you might be able to increase the withholding there to cover your SS tax liability instead. Many of my clients prefer the withholding option because it's simpler - once you set it up, you don't have to think about it again. Quarterly estimated taxes require more attention and discipline to make those four payments per year. I'd recommend using the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator or consulting with a tax professional to determine your potential tax liability, then decide which approach works better for your situation.

Yes, you can absolutely change your withholding percentage later. Just submit a new Form W-4V with your updated choice. It typically takes a month or two for changes to take effect.

I tried calling the SSA for weeks to ask about this exact thing when I started getting benefits!!! Could NEVER get through. Always busy signals or disconnected after waiting forever. Soooo frustrating!!!! Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a real person in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Cost a little but was worth it to finally get my tax withholding set up properly. Some SSA agent helped me fill out the W-4V over the phone.

They helped me complete it over the phone and then I just had to sign it and mail it in. Saved me a lot of confusion since I wasn't sure which boxes to check!

Don't forget about STATE taxes too! Federal is one thing but some states tax SS benefits too. I live in Colorado and moved from Minnesota partly because MN taxes SS and CO doesn't. Worth checking your state rules!

My sister and her husband had a HUGE problem with this. They both started collecting early at 62 but still working part-time. Didn't withhold taxes and didn't know about the earnings limit either. Got hit with reduced benefits AND a tax bill! Make sure you understand all the rules...

Thank you all for the helpful replies! I'm going to download Form W-4V today and request 10% withholding to start. Better to be safe than sorry. I appreciate everyone sharing their experiences - especially the warnings about surprise tax bills!

Great thread everyone! As a newcomer to Social Security, I wanted to add that the IRS also has a helpful Interactive Tax Assistant tool online that can help determine if your Social Security benefits will be taxable based on your specific income situation. It walks you through the calculation step by step. Also, for those mentioning quarterly estimated taxes as an alternative to withholding - you can use Form 1040ES to calculate and make those payments. The due dates are typically January 15th, April 15th, June 15th, and September 15th each year. One thing I learned from my accountant is that if you're married and your spouse is still working with regular W-2 withholding, you might be able to increase their withholding instead of setting up withholding on Social Security. Sometimes that's simpler than managing multiple withholding sources. Just another option to consider!

As someone who just started navigating Social Security benefits myself, I want to thank everyone for this incredibly helpful discussion! I'm in a similar situation to Malik - just turned 66 and received my first SS check last month. One thing I discovered that might help others is that you can also access and print Form W-4V directly from the SSA website (ssa.gov) under "Forms" rather than having to call. I was able to fill it out online, print it, and mail it in. Took about 6 weeks for the withholding to start showing up on my monthly statements. I chose 12% withholding after using that IRS tax estimator tool Sean mentioned - it really helped me understand my potential tax liability. Between my pension, some part-time consulting work, and Social Security, I was definitely going to owe taxes on my benefits. The peace of mind is worth it. Last thing any of us retirees need is a big unexpected tax bill when we're on fixed incomes!