When does tax withholding start after requesting it on Social Security benefits? Can I reverse it easily?
I'm currently working part-time while receiving Social Security retirement benefits and worried about my tax situation. I haven't been having any federal taxes withheld from my SS checks, but I'm wondering if I should start. If I request tax withholding on my benefits now, how long does it typically take for SSA to implement it? And if I stop working next year (when my income will drop below taxable levels), how complicated is it to reverse the withholding? Is there a waiting period to stop the withholding once I request it to end? Just trying to plan ahead since my work situation is temporary.
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Aaron Lee
You can start or stop federal tax withholding by completing Form W-4V. In my experience, it took about 30-45 days for the changes to take effect. You can request 7%, 10%, 12%, or 22% withholding rate. When you're ready to stop the withholding, you'll submit the same form but check the box to stop withholding instead. That also took about a month to process when I did it last year.
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Alexis Robinson
•Thank you! That's really helpful to know about the timeframe. So about 1-2 months both ways. Do you know if I can submit the W-4V online through my SSA account or do I have to mail it in?
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Chloe Mitchell
why bother with all that paperwork??? just increase your withholding at your job to cover what you might owe from SS. WAY easier to adjust on your W-4 at work than dealing with SSA bureaucracy!!
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Alexis Robinson
•That's a really good point I hadn't thought of! It would be much simpler to just adjust my work withholding. I'll check with my payroll department on Monday to see what I need to do. Thanks for the suggestion!
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Michael Adams
•I did this exact thing when I was working part-time with SS benefits. Just calculated roughly what my tax liability would be from the SS portion and had extra taken from my paycheck. MUCH easier than the SSA paperwork route.
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Natalie Wang
Good morning! Social Security specialist here. To add to what others have said, you have several options: 1. File Form W-4V requesting voluntary withholding from your SS benefits (7%, 10%, 12%, or 22%) 2. Make quarterly estimated tax payments 3. Increase withholding from your wages as another commenter suggested The processing time for Form W-4V is typically 30-60 days, and the same timeframe applies when you want to stop withholding. There's no penalty for starting/stopping, but be aware that if you have no withholding and owe more than $1,000 at tax time, you might face an underpayment penalty. For your specific situation where you'll stop working soon, increasing your current paycheck withholding might indeed be the simplest solution.
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Noah Torres
•Is there anyway to do this online?? I hate having to mail in forms and wait forever for them to process things. My mom has been waiting 3 months for them to process her address change!
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Natalie Wang
•Unfortunately, the W-4V for tax withholding from Social Security benefits cannot be submitted online at this time. It must be mailed or delivered in person to your local Social Security office. Address changes should be much faster than 3 months though - your mother might want to follow up on that as it shouldn't take nearly that long.
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Samantha Hall
SSA is THE WORST with processing paperwork!!! When I submitted my W-4V last year it took them ALMOST THREE MONTHS to start the withholding, and by then I was hit with an underpayment penalty because not enough was withheld for the year. And don't even get me started on trying to call them to check on status - impossible to get through!
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Ryan Young
•If you're having trouble getting through to Social Security on the phone, you might want to try Claimyr. I used their service last month when I was desperately trying to check on my application status. They got me through to a live person at SSA in about 20 minutes instead of waiting for hours or getting disconnected. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Seriously saved me so much frustration.
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Michael Adams
Be careful with your calculations if you go the route of increasing withholding at work. Up to 85% of your Social Security can be taxable depending on your combined income. The IRS has a worksheet to figure out exactly how much of your SS is taxable. Don't want you to withhold too little and get surprised at tax time!
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Alexis Robinson
•I didn't realize it could be as high as 85%! Is there an easy calculator online somewhere to figure this out? My combined income this year will be around $38,000 including SS.
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Natalie Wang
•At a combined income of $38,000, some of your Social Security will indeed be taxable. The IRS has an online tool called the Interactive Tax Assistant that can help determine how much is taxable in your situation. You can find it on irs.gov by searching for "Is My Social Security Taxable." With your income level, it's likely that up to 50% of your benefits could be taxable, but the calculator will give you a more precise answer.
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Chloe Mitchell
i just put extra in my savings each month for taxes instead of giving govt an interest free loan all year. then if i need the money for emergency i have it. just sayin
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Michael Adams
•That works if you're disciplined, but be warned - if you owe more than $1,000 at tax time, the IRS might hit you with an underpayment penalty. I learned that the hard way!
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Aaron Lee
Just as a follow-up to my earlier comment - make sure if you do file the W-4V that you keep a copy and perhaps send it certified mail. When I did mine, they claimed they never received the first one I sent, and I had to submit it again which added another 6 weeks to the process. The SSA can be frustratingly slow with paperwork!
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Alexis Robinson
•Thank you for the tip! After reading through all the comments, I think I'll just adjust my work withholding on Monday. It seems much faster and more reliable than dealing with SSA paperwork. I appreciate everyone's help!
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StarStrider
Smart decision! Adjusting your work withholding is definitely the path of least resistance here. Just make sure to calculate it properly - with your combined income around $38k, roughly 50% of your SS benefits will likely be taxable. So if you're getting say $1,500/month in SS, about $750 of that is taxable income. Factor that into your withholding calculations at work. Good luck with everything!
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Olivia Kay
•This is really helpful math! I hadn't thought to break it down monthly like that. So if I'm getting about $1,400/month in SS benefits, roughly $700 of that would be taxable income to factor in. That makes it much easier to figure out how much extra to have withheld from my paycheck. Thanks for putting it in such clear terms!
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Nora Bennett
One thing to keep in mind - if you're planning to stop working next year and your income will drop significantly, you might want to consider making quarterly estimated tax payments instead of adjusting withholding. That way you have more control over the timing and amounts. For Q4 2024, the estimated payment is due January 15th, so you could make a payment then to cover any shortfall from this year without having to mess with withholding at all. Just another option to consider alongside the work withholding adjustment!
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Zara Malik
•That's a great point about quarterly payments! I hadn't considered that option. Since I'm planning to stop working in early 2025, having that flexibility with timing could be really useful. Do you know if there's a minimum amount required for quarterly payments, or can you pay whatever amount you calculate you'll owe? I'm still leaning toward the work withholding adjustment for simplicity, but it's good to know I have this backup option if my situation changes.
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LordCommander
For quarterly estimated tax payments, there's no minimum amount - you can pay whatever you calculate you'll owe. The key is making sure your total payments (withholding + estimated payments) equal at least 90% of this year's tax liability or 100% of last year's (110% if your prior year AGI was over $150k). Since you're planning to stop working early next year, quarterly payments might actually give you the most flexibility. You could make a Q4 payment in January to cover any 2024 shortfall, then reassess your 2025 situation once you're no longer working. The IRS Form 1040ES has worksheets to help calculate the right amount.
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Miguel Silva
•This is exactly the kind of detailed guidance I was hoping for! The flexibility of quarterly payments is really appealing, especially since my work situation is temporary. I like that I can make a Q4 payment in January to handle any 2024 shortfall, then completely reassess for 2025 when my income drops. Do you happen to know if I can make these estimated payments online through the IRS website, or do I need to mail in checks? I'm trying to avoid as much paperwork and mail delays as possible given all the horror stories about SSA processing times in this thread!
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