From 0% to 85% of Social
Security payments are taxable, depending on how much other income you had and
your filing status.
Generally, the computation is as follows:
"To find out whether any of your benefits may be taxable, compare the
base amount for your filing status with the total of:
- One-half
of your benefits; plus
- All
your other income, including tax-exempt interest
Base amount. Your base amount is:
- ·
$25,000 if you are single, head of household, or
qualifying widow(er);
- ·
$25,000 if you are married filing separately and
lived apart from your spouse for all of 2016
- ·
$32,000 if you are married filing jointly; or
- ·
-0- if you are married filing separately and
lived with your spouse at any time during 2016."
Thus if you were single and made $22,000 in Social Security payments and
nothing else, none of your SS would be taxable because one-half of your SS is
$11,000, which is less than your base of $25,000.
But if you are married, received $30,000 in SS payments, and also received
$20,000 in a distribution from an IRA, then the formula is:
One-half of your benefits is $15,000 - add to $20,000 outside income, which totals
$35,000, which is more than your base of $32,000...so some of your SS would be
taxable.
Please see IRS
Publication 17 for more explanation and more examples, especially Worksheet
11-1.
