Filing for Seniors

[jltllt]

We are 81 and were wondering if there's a time when we no longer need to file a tax return seeing the ONLY income we have is SSA?

[VolvoGirl]

If you only get Social Security, SSDI or SSA-1099 you do not need to file a tax return, it isn’t taxable.   No matter what age you are.   

[Hal_Al]

There is no age limit for filing taxes.  But, there is an income limit.  

Q. Does social security count as income when determining is you have enough income to have to file a tax return?

A. It's complicated  but the simple answer is: No, for most people. 

Social security only becomes taxable when added to sufficient other income. 

Social security (including SSDI) becomes taxable when your income, including 1/2 your social security, reaches:

Married Filing Jointly(MFJ): $32,000

Single or head of household: $25,000

Married Filing Separately and lived with your spouse at any time during the tax year: $0

How much  is "sufficient other income"? The simple answer is $14,600 (a single person's filing requirement). But the answer varies dependent on marital status, filing status, age, the amount of your Social security, and whether you are claimed as a dependent by someone else.

[NCperson]

@jltllt if your only income is social security, then is would be mathematically impossible to be required to file.

If you both received the maximum monthly payment available of $5,108 per month per recipient, that would be $122,600 of social security income for the year. 

Because of the formula defining what portion of that is subject to tax, only $20,700 would be subject to tax.  And since that is below the standard deduction of $34,700, there would be no FEDERAL filing requirement.  State requirements may vary. 

I assume you would file JOINT, both are over 65 years old, there are no dependents and you do not receive medical benefits from the Marketplace (i.e. you are on Medicare).