Yes. Immigrants who work in the United States generally pay into Social Security on every paycheck, with 6.2% withheld for Social Security tax and 1.45% for Medicare, and their employer matches both amounts. That obligation applies whether the worker holds a green card, a temporary work visa, or no legal authorization at all. Whether those contributions ever translate into a monthly check is a separate question that turns on work credits and immigration status.
How the Payroll Deduction Works
The Federal Insurance Contributions Act requires employers to withhold 6.2% of gross wages for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare, with the employer matching both, for a combined 15.3% of every covered dollar earned.1Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates Self-employed immigrants pay the full 15.3% themselves under the Self-Employment Contributions Act.2Social Security Administration. What is FICA? In 2026, Social Security tax applies only to the first $184,500 of earnings; Medicare tax has no cap.
Lawful permanent residents and workers on visas such as the H-1B or L-1 receive a Social Security Number when they get work authorization, and their contributions post directly to an individual earnings record at the Social Security Administration.3Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Alien Individuals by Immigration Status – H-1B Employers link that record to payroll through Form I-9.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
Undocumented Workers Pay In Too
Workers without legal authorization frequently have FICA taxes withheld from their pay. When they file federal tax returns, many use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, which the IRS issues to people who have a tax filing obligation but cannot obtain a Social Security Number. The IRS states plainly that an ITIN does not authorize work or qualify anyone for Social Security benefits.5Internal Revenue Service. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)
On the payroll side, wages get reported under numbers that sometimes do not match a valid name-and-number combination. When that happens, the Social Security Administration parks those wages in the Earnings Suspense File.6Social Security Administration. Social Security Administration’s Master Earnings File: Background Information A 2015 audit by SSA’s Office of Inspector General found the file held $1.2 trillion in wages accumulated from 1937 through 2012.7Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General. Status of the Social Security Administration’s Earnings Suspense File The taxes paid on those wages still flow into the trust funds and help pay current retirees, even though the workers who generated them typically cannot claim benefits themselves.
Who Is Exempt From Paying
Not every immigrant worker pays FICA. Foreign students and exchange visitors on F-1, J-1, M-1, or Q visas are generally exempt during their first five calendar years in the United States, as long as they remain nonresident aliens for tax purposes and the work connects to the purpose of their visa.8Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Student Liability for Social Security and Medicare Taxes Qualifying F-1 work includes on-campus jobs of up to 20 hours per week during the school year (40 hours in summer) and off-campus employment approved by USCIS, such as Optional Practical Training. The exemption does not extend to F-2, J-2, or M-2 spouses and dependents, and it ends when the worker changes to a non-exempt status or becomes a resident alien under the substantial presence test.9Internal Revenue Service. Publication 519 (2025), U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
A separate exemption in the tax code covers any student, U.S. or foreign, who works for the same school where they are enrolled at least half-time, when the job is incidental to their studies. It applies only to on-campus employment at the student’s own institution.8Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Student Liability for Social Security and Medicare Taxes
Totalization Agreements for Workers Split Between Countries
The United States has bilateral totalization agreements with a number of countries that prevent double taxation on the same income and let workers combine credits across systems.10Social Security Administration. U.S. International Social Security Agreements Under these agreements, an employee sent to the U.S. on a temporary assignment can continue paying into the home country’s system instead of the American one. The agreement specifies which country collects based on the length of the assignment and where the employer is based.11Internal Revenue Service. Totalization Agreements
The agreements also help someone who worked, say, 25 years in the U.S. and 15 years in a treaty country combine credits from both systems to meet either country’s minimum eligibility threshold. Without that combination, a worker could fall short of the U.S. 40-credit requirement and lose out entirely despite decades of contributions.
What It Takes to Collect Benefits
Paying in is only half the equation. To qualify for retirement benefits a worker needs at least 40 quarters of coverage, which generally takes about ten years of work.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 414 – Insured Status for Purposes of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Benefits In 2026, $1,890 in covered wages earns one credit, up to four credits per year.13Social Security Administration. Quarter of Coverage
Credits alone are not enough for immigrants. Federal law requires that anyone receiving Social Security benefits be lawfully present in the United States, and someone who is deported loses their monthly benefits until they are lawfully readmitted as a permanent resident.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 402 – Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Benefit Payments Under 8 U.S.C. ยง 1611, aliens who are not “qualified aliens” are generally barred from federal public benefits, but Title II Social Security benefits are exempt from that bar for anyone lawfully present.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1611 – Aliens Who Are Not Qualified Aliens Ineligible for Federal Public Benefits A lawful permanent resident with 40 credits collects on the same terms as a citizen. An undocumented worker who paid in for years but never obtains lawful status generally cannot.
Social Security Is Not SSI
Two federal programs get confused constantly. Social Security retirement and disability benefits (Title II) are earned through work credits and funded by FICA taxes. Supplemental Security Income is a separate program for people who are aged, blind, or disabled and have limited income and resources. SSI is funded by general revenue, not payroll taxes, and its immigration rules are far stricter.
Most immigrants are barred from SSI unless they fit a specific category. Refugees and people granted asylum can receive SSI for up to seven years after their admission or grant date. Lawful permanent residents qualify only if they have earned 40 qualifying quarters of work coverage or are veterans. Immigrants who were already receiving SSI on August 22, 1996, when the welfare reform law took effect, remain protected.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1612 – Limited Eligibility of Qualified Aliens for Certain Federal Programs So an immigrant who has worked ten years and earned 40 credits can collect Social Security retirement while remaining ineligible for SSI.
Merging ITIN Records After You Get an SSN
If you filed taxes under an ITIN and later received a Social Security Number, the IRS does not merge the records automatically. You have to notify the IRS, either by visiting a local office or by mailing a letter that includes your full name, mailing address, ITIN, a copy of your new Social Security card, and a copy of the original CP 565 ITIN assignment notice if you still have it.17Internal Revenue Service. Additional ITIN Information Once the IRS voids the old ITIN and links your prior tax records to the new SSN, the wage data becomes available for Social Security purposes.
Skipping this step means you may not get credit for all the wages you earned and taxes you paid, and it directly affects the size of any future benefit. Keeping old pay stubs, W-2s, and tax returns matters, because reassigning wages that landed in the Earnings Suspense File requires documentation that you were the person who actually earned them.
Collecting Benefits From Outside the United States
Non-citizens who qualify for benefits and then leave the country face additional rules. The Social Security Administration generally stops payments to non-citizens after six consecutive calendar months outside the United States, with exceptions based on country of citizenship and totalization agreements.18Social Security Administration. International Programs – SSA Payments Outside US To resume payments after a stop, you must return to the U.S. and be lawfully present for an entire calendar month. SSA’s Payments Abroad Screening Tool shows country-specific restrictions.
Nonresident aliens receiving Social Security benefits are subject to a flat 30% tax on 85% of the benefit amount, an effective withholding rate of 25.5% of the monthly check. Tax treaties with certain countries reduce or eliminate this withholding.19Social Security Administration. Nonresident Alien Tax Withholding
One recent change helps immigrants who split their careers between countries. The Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset used to reduce Social Security benefits for anyone who also received a pension from work not covered by U.S. Social Security, including foreign government pensions. The Social Security Fairness Act, signed on January 5, 2025, eliminated both provisions. Benefits payable for January 2024 and later are no longer subject to either reduction.20Social Security Administration. Social Security Fairness Act: Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO)