Best Posts in Thread: U.S. Tax on Social Security

I received the SSA FORM 1099 Social Security Benefit Statements for both my son and I in the mail. I had received some misinformation on the U.S. requirement to file an income tax return on social security benefits so I did some research. If your only income for 2015 was your SSA benefits, even the max benefit does not require you to file a return, because only half the benefit is taxable and that alone does not equate to the taxable amount threshold minimum. If you had additional income I suggest you use a tax calculator to determine your status. Another misconception I had is I thought I had to add my child's SSA benefit to mine for total income but the child's benefit is separate and cannot be included with mine. However, given the child's benefit is half mine, his is not taxable if that is his only income. Hope this helps anyone wondering about any of this.

 

I would recommend filling out a tax return anyway. There are several ways available on the internet to complete electronically. Save in a tax folder on your computer. If for any, currently unknown, reason the IRS wants to know why you didn't file just print out whatever years they are questioning and your done - without having to backtrack and stress over finding old documents. Very cheap 'insurance'.