For many in retirement there is a shock when they find out that they do have to pay taxes on Social Security benefits and unfortunately this is nothing new.

Taxing Social Security benefits began back in 1983 when Congress altered the Amendments of the Social Security Act to have a portion of benefits subject to federal income taxation.

The rational was simple: to keep the Social Security program solvent there had to be a change, so why not tax the rich.

At the time this novel concept was only going to be an issue for less than 5% of all retirees, but with all “good intentions” set by Congress today there over 40% of retirees that are paying some tax on their benefits.

The good news about being subject to taxes on your benefits is that, right now, only up to 85% of your Social Security benefit can be taxable.

We are stressing right now, because there is always Congress and Congress is looking for money.

According to Social Security.gov to help save the Social Security program there are proposals to increase the taxation of benefits even higher than what they are already at.

How to figure out if I will pay taxes on Social Security benefits?

There are a few factors that determine if you will have to pay taxes on your Social Security benefit and they are:

Factor #1) Your other taxable income:

Believe it or not if you happen to have more income than a certain amount you will have to pay taxes on your Social Security benefit.

If you have very little reportable income, other than your Social Security benefit there is a great chance that this tax will never affect you.

Again, it is all about reportable income and what the IRS considers to be reportable is:

• ½ of your annual Social Security benefit,
• Your adjusted gross income (AGI) and
• Tax-exempt interest you have as income.

What does AGI include as income?

AGI is everything on line 11 of the 2022 IRS form 1040 which includes income from sources like:

Wages, Capital Gains, Rental and Pension Income, Interest and Distributions from investments like Traditional 401(k)’s/IRA’s/403(b)’s.

For a comprehensive list of what counts as income click here.

Basically, if your reportable income in retirement is not from Roth Accounts, Health Savings Accounts (HSA’s), 401(h) plans, Non-Qualified Annuities, Life insurance or Home loans then it will count towards your AGI.

• Pro tip: If you have any assets in a Traditional 401(k) or investments vehicles where you delay paying taxes until retirement you will most likely be paying taxes on your Social Security benefit.

What does Tax-Exempt Interest include as income?

According to the IRS is includes “any tax-exempt original issue discount (OID)), such as from municipal bonds.”

You can find this type of income on line 2a of the 2022 IRS tax form 1040.

A good rule to follow when it comes to paying taxes on your Social Security benefit:

If you are trying to avoid taxes while you are young, working and can afford to do so you will most likely pay more taxes later in retirement, when you are old, not working and need the money.

Factor #2: How you file your taxes with the IRS:

There is mathematical equation to determine if you are even eligible to be subject to taxes on your Social Security benefit and it all comes down if you file your taxes as an Individual of Jointly.

IRMAA is now impacting more than 7 million retirees this year and for many they have questions. This report will answer all the questions relating to “How do you calculate IRMAA Surcharges?”

What is IRMAA?

IRMAA, short for Medicare’s income Monthly Adjustment Amount, is a surcharge on top of a Medicare beneficiary’s Part B and Part D premiums if they are earning too much income during the year.

Simply put, IRMAA is a tax on income through Medicare and compounding the impact of this tax is that IRMAA also reduces your social Security benefit.You pay this tax of IRMAA automatically through your Social Security benefit too. So, the more money you generate in retirement the higher your Medicare premiums will be and the less Social Security benefits you will receive.Think of IRMAA as being a huge revenue generator for Congress that also helps alleviate the burden of what Social Security must pay out in benefits.Social Security is not going broke…not even close.

How do you calculate IRMAA Surcharges?

There are 2 different sets of IRMAA surcharges as this tax will affect both your Medicare Part B AND Part D premiums.To calculate IRMAA Surcharges – Part BYou must first realize that no one person ever pays full price or the “true cost” of Medicare Part B as the federal government provides a subsidy for all retirees.The “true cost” of Medicare Part B is the current year’s monthly Part B premium multiplied by 4.

In 2024 the “true cost” of Medicare Part B is $698.80 a month (4 X $174.70). According to Social Security.gov IRMAA is a Medicare subsidy reduction as those who reach it receive a lower subsidy for Part B premiums.T

he subsidy per IRMAA Thresholds is as follows:

• IRMAAGovernment Subsidy of Part B
• Retiree Portion of Part B
• No IRMAA75%1st Threshold65%
• 2nd Threshold50%
• 3rd Threshold35%
• 4th Threshold20%
• 5th Threshold15%

Knowing the “true cost” of Medicare Part B and the amount of subsidy each person will receive when in IRMAA the monthly surcharge can easily be found.In 2024 the IRMAA Part B surcharges per Threshold are as follows:

• IRMAARetiree Portion of Part B
• True Cost of Medicare Part B
• Part B and IRMAA Costs
• No IRMAA25%$698.80$174.70
• 1st Threshold35%$698.80$244.60
• 2nd Threshold50%$698.80$349.40
• 3rd Threshold65%$698.80$454.20
• 4th Threshold80%$698.80$559.00
• 5th Threshold85%$698.80$594.00

Calculating IRMAA Part B in the future:

IRMAA Part B surcharges move with in conjunction with the Medicare Part B premium. If the Part B premium increases the IRMAA Part B surcharge will inflate at the same rate. Over the next 8 years the Trustees of Medicare are projecting that the Part B premium will inflate by over 6.30%.By 2032 this premium, according to the projections, may be $285.60 a month making the surcharges equate to:

For many in retirement there is a shock when they find out that they do have to pay taxes on Social Security benefits and unfortunately this is nothing new. Taxing Social Security benefits began back in 1983 when Congress altered the Amendments of the Social Security Act to have a portion of benefits subject to federal income taxation.

The rational was simple: to keep the Social Security program solvent there had to be a change, so why not tax the rich. At the time this novel concept was only going to be an issue for less than 5% of all retirees, but with all “good intentions” set by Congress today there over 40% of retirees that are paying some tax on their benefits. The good news about being subject to taxes on your benefits is that, right now, only up to 85% of your Social Security benefit can be taxable.We are stressing right now, because there is always Congress and Congress is looking for money.

According to Social Security.gov to help save the Social Security program there are proposals to increase the taxation of benefits even higher than what they are already at.How to figure out if I will pay taxes on Social Security benefits?There are a few factors that determine if you will have to pay taxes on your Social Security benefit and they are:

Factor #1) Your other taxable income

Believe it or not if you happen to have more income than a certain amount you will have to pay taxes on your Social Security benefit.If you have very little reportable income, other than your Social Security benefit there is a great chance that this tax will never affect you. Again, it is all about reportable income and what the IRS considers to be reportable is:½ of your annual Social Security benefit, Your adjusted gross income (AGI) andTax-exempt interest you have as income.

What does AGI include as income?

AGI is everything on line 11 of the 2022 IRS form 1040 which includes income from sources like:Wages, Capital Gains, Rental and Pension Income, Interest and Distributions from investments like Traditional 401(k)’s/IRA’s/403(b)’s.For a comprehensive list of what counts as income click here.Basically, if your reportable income in retirement is not from Roth Accounts, Health Savings Accounts (HSA’s), 401(h) plans, Non-Qualified Annuities, Life Insurance or Home Loans then it will count towards your AGI.

Pro tip: If you have any assets in a Traditional 401(k) or investments vehicles where you delay paying taxes until retirement you will most likely be paying taxes on your Social Security benefit.

What does Tax-Exempt Interest include as income?

According to the IRS is includes “any tax-exempt original issue discount (OID)), such as from municipal bonds.”You can find this type of income on line 2a of the 2022 IRS tax form 1040. A good rule to follow when it comes to paying taxes on your Social Security benefit: If you are trying to avoid taxes while you are young, working and can afford to do so you will most likely pay more taxes later in retirement, when you are old, not working and need the money.

Factor #2: How you file your taxes with the IRS

There is mathematical equation to determine if you are even eligible to be subject to taxes on your Social Security benefit and it all comes down if you file your taxes as an Individual of Jointly.