If you have more than one employer and your wages were over the annual social security wage limit of $87,000.00 for 2003, you probably had too much social security tax withheld. (There is no wage limit for Medicare tax.)

You can take a credit for the excess withheld in the "Payments" section of Form 1040 or Form 1040A. Since it is credited in the payment section, it is a refundable credit and is applied like a payment. It will either be applied against any tax owed or refunded to you. The maximum social security tax for the tax year can be found in the Instructions for Form 1040 (General Inst.) for the "Payments" section under "Excess Social Security and RRTA Tax Withheld," or in Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax .

References:

• Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax
• Tax Topic 608, Excess social security and RRTA tax withheld
• Instructions for Form 1040 (General Inst.)

Yes, if your part-time job is with a different employer. Each employer is responsible for withholding on wages subject to social security up to the annual wage limit which is $87,000.00 for the 2003 tax year. They are not responsible for determining any amount withheld by another employer. Consequently, with two or more employers, too much social security will be withheld if your total wages exceed the annual wage limit. (The wage limit is adjusted annually for inflation.) That is the reason there is a credit for excess social security and RRTA withheld. It is in the "Payments" section of Forms 1040 and 1040A so that if it is not needed to apply against tax owed, it is refunded to you.

The Medicare tax has no annual wage limit.

References:

• Publication 15, Circular E, Employer's Tax Guide
• Tax Topic 608, Excess social security and RRTA tax withheld

Generally, employee wages are subject to social security and medicare taxes regardless of the employee's age or whether he or she is receiving social security benefits.

References:

• Publication 15, Circular E, Employer's Tax Guide

No, social security tax is paid up to the annual wage base limit regardless of whether your income is derived from self employment income, wages and tips, or a combination of both. For 2003, this dollar amount is $87,000. When computing Form 1040, Schedule SE (PDF) , Self-Employment Tax , the annual wage base amount is addressed to prevent over payment of the social security tax.

References:

• Form 1040, Schedule SE (PDF), Self-Employment Tax

If you worked for two or more employers, the credit for excess social security withheld is claimed on Form 1040 (PDF) line 64. If you file Form 1040A (PDF), include the credit in the total of line 43 and put "Excess SST" and the amount of the credit in the space to the left of the line. If you are filing a joint return, you figure the credit separately for you and your spouse. For complete instructions, refer to Credit for Excess Social Security Tax or Railroad Retirement Tax Withheld in Chapter 38 of Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax .

References:

• Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax
• Publication 213 (PDF), Check Your Withholding

Credit for excess social security withheld is claimed on page 2 of Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. Refer to Credit for Excess Social Security Tax or Railroad Retirement Tax Withheld in Chapter 38 of Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax.

References:

• Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax
• Publication 213 (PDF), Check Your Withholding

Generally, in situations such as this, the employer is not considering you to be an employee. Rather, you are being treated as an independent contractor (self-employed person). If you cannot resolve this matter with your employer, and if you feel that an employer-employee relationship exists, you should submit a Form SS-8 (PDF), Determination of Employee Work Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding. The factors used to determine if an employer-employee relationship exists are covered in Chapter 2 of Publication 15-A (PDF), Employer's Supplemental Tax Guide.

If your status as an employee is not at issue, it may be that you are in a category of employment whose earnings are not defined as wages under U.S. social security law. Find out from your employer the reason that social security and Medicare taxes are not being withheld from your pay. If you have further questions, contact the IRS at 800-829-1040 or visit an IRS walk-in office for assistance.

References:

• Form SS-8 (PDF) , Determination of Employee Work Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding
• Publication 15-A (PDF) , Employer's Supplemental Tax Guide
• Publication 1779 (PDF) , Independent Contractor or Employee

Students who perform services for the school, college, or university where they are enrolled and regularly attend classes are usually not subject to social security and Medicare taxes.

If the student works for a public school, college or university which is subject to a section 218 agreement, the student's services are automatically subject to social security and Medicare taxes if the state has chosen to cover students under its section 218 agreement with the Social Security Administration. The employer can tell you whether its students' services are subject to social security and Medicare taxes under a section 218 agreement.

References:

• Publication 15, Circular E, Employer's Tax Guide
• Federal Regulation section 31.3121(b)(10)-1

If you are not performing a service for the university, your stipend would be subject to income tax only if it does not meet the qualified scholarship rules. Please refer toPublication 970 Tax Benefits for Education, for information on when a stipend would be a qualified scholarship, which would not be subject to social security and Medicare taxes. If you are performing a service for the university, your income is taxable for income tax purposes, but would generally be exempt from social security and Medicare taxes if you are enrolled and regularly attending classes unless you are covered under a section 218 agreement. Refer to Publication 15, Employer's Tax Guide.

If your employer has been withholding social security and Medicare taxes from your stipend, the employer should refund the withheld tax. If the employer refuses to do so, Form 843 (PDF), Claim For Refund and Request For Abatement, can be filed to claim credit for the incorrectly withheld tax.

References:

• Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education
• Publication 15, Employer's Tax Guide
• Form 843 (PDF), Claim For Refund and Request For Abatement

The entire amount of a minister's housing allowance is subject to social security and Medicare taxes, even though it may be excluded from taxable income for income taxes. A minister's compensation for services as an employee, as well as from self-employment, is subject to Self-Employment Contributions Act (SECA) taxes, not the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). Under SECA the self-employed person pays all the taxes while under FICA the employer and employee each pay half of the taxes.

However, if you are a duly ordained Commissioned, or licensed minister, or member of a religious order not under a vow of poverty, or a Christian Science Practitioner who elected and was approved for exemption from Social Security coverage and self-employment tax, your housing allowance would not be subject to social security or Medicare taxes under SECA.

References:

• Publication 517, Social Security and Other Information for the Members of the Clergy and Religious Workers
• Form 4361 (PDF), Application for Exemption from Self-Employment Tax for Use by Ministers, Members of Religious Orders
• Tax Topic 417, Earnings for clergy

No, you do not pay social security and Medicare taxes on retirement income.

References:

• Publication 15, Circular E, Employer's Tax Guide

Generally, services performed by you as a nonresident alien temporarily in the United States as a nonimmigrant under subparagraph (F), (J), (M), or (Q) of section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act are not covered under the social security and medicare programs if the services are performed to carry out the purpose for which you were admitted to the United States. This means that there should be no withholding of social security or Medicare taxes from the pay you receive for these services. These types of services are very limited, and generally include only on-campus work, practical training, and economic hardship employment. However, you are covered under the social security and medicare programs for these services if you are considered a resident alien, even though your nonimmigrant classification ("F," "J," "M," or "Q") remains the same. Social security and Medicare taxes will be withheld from your pay.

Additionally, any student who is enrolled and regularly attending classes at a school, college, or university may be exempt from social security and Medicare taxes on pay for services performed for such school, college, or university.

References:

• Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
• Publication 597, Information on the United States-Canada Income Tax TreatyPublication 515 (PDF) , Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Entities