Report your child’s Social Security benefits on your child’s own tax return, not yours. The SSA-1099 comes in your child’s name and Social Security number, and the IRS treats the money as your child’s income even though you receive the checks as representative payee. In most cases, no return actually needs to be filed, because a child whose only income is Social Security falls well below the point where any of it becomes taxable.
The Benefits Are Your Child’s Income
IRS Publication 915 states that Social Security benefits are taxable to “the person who has the legal right to receive the benefits.” When your child qualifies for dependent or survivor benefits, your child is that person. Receiving the check in your name as payee does not change who owns the income for tax purposes.1Internal Revenue Service. Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits
SSA reinforces this by issuing Form SSA-1099 in your child’s name and Social Security number. Adding those benefits to your own Form 1040 would inflate your adjusted gross income and could push more of your own Social Security into the taxable range. Keep the two returns separate.
Figuring Out If Any of It Is Taxable
Taxability turns on a figure the IRS sometimes calls provisional income. Take your child’s adjusted gross income (excluding Social Security), add any tax-exempt interest, then add half of the benefits from Box 5 of the SSA-1099. Compare that total against the thresholds in 26 U.S.C. § 86:2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 86 – Social Security and Tier 1 Railroad Retirement Benefits
- Below $25,000: none of the benefits are taxable.
- Between $25,000 and $34,000: up to 50% may be taxable.
- Above $34,000: up to 85% may be taxable.
These thresholds apply to single filers, which is how a dependent child files. They were set by statute and have not been adjusted for inflation since 1994, so they still apply for the 2025 tax year.
Run the math on a typical case. A child whose only income is $12,000 in annual Social Security has provisional income of $6,000 — half the benefits, nothing else. That is far below $25,000, so zero dollars of the benefits are taxable. For a child to clear $25,000, they would need substantial wages, investment income, or trust distributions on top of the Social Security, which is uncommon for minors.
Does Your Child Need to File?
Even when nothing is taxable, a filing requirement can still exist based on total income. For the 2025 tax year, a dependent child under 65 must file if any of these apply:3Internal Revenue Service. Publication 501, Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information
- Unearned income exceeded $1,350. Only the taxable portion of Social Security counts here. If none of the benefits are taxable, they add nothing to this test.
- Earned income exceeded $15,750 (wages, tips, self-employment).
- Gross income exceeded the larger of $1,350, or earned income (up to $15,300) plus $450.
This is where most parents can stop. If your child’s only income is Social Security and provisional income sits below $25,000, taxable benefits are zero, unearned income for the threshold test is zero, and no return is required. A child who also made $800 at a summer job still would not need to file, because the earned income is below both the $15,750 cap and the $1,350 gross income floor.4Internal Revenue Service. Check If You Need to File a Tax Return
The picture changes when a child has meaningful investment income, dividends from a custodial account, or a part-time job with substantial earnings. In that case, run the provisional income calculation first, then check the filing thresholds.
Filling Out the Return
If filing is required, start with Form SSA-1099. Box 5 shows net benefits paid during the year — total benefits minus any repayments.5Social Security Administration. Social Security Administration POMS GN 05002.014 – Social Security Statement Box 5, Net Benefits
Enter the Box 5 amount on your child’s Form 1040, Line 6a. Then work through the Social Security Benefits Worksheet in the Form 1040 instructions, or the more detailed version in Publication 915, to figure the taxable amount. That goes on Line 6b.6Internal Revenue Service. 1040 (2025) Instructions
The worksheet runs the provisional income math step by step: plug in other income, add tax-exempt interest, add half of Box 5, compare against $25,000 and $34,000. The result from Line 6b combines with your child’s other income to form their adjusted gross income. Publication 915 has worked examples if you want to double-check the numbers.1Internal Revenue Service. Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits
Use your child’s Social Security number as the primary taxpayer on the return. If you file electronically, the software handles that automatically once you enter the child as the filer.
When the Kiddie Tax Applies
If your child’s unearned income is high enough to force a filing, the kiddie tax may follow. For 2025 and 2026, the first $1,350 of unearned income is sheltered by the standard deduction, the next $1,350 is taxed at the child’s own rate, and anything above $2,700 is taxed at the parent’s marginal rate. Cross that $2,700 line and your child must attach Form 8615.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8615 (2025)
Form 8615 applies when all of these are true: unearned income exceeded $2,700, the child must file a return, at least one parent was alive at year-end, and the child did not file jointly. The age rules cover children under 18, 18-year-olds who did not earn more than half their own support, and full-time students aged 19 through 23 who also did not earn more than half their own support.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1 – Tax Imposed
Taxable Social Security counts as unearned income here. A child with $3,500 in taxable benefits and $1,000 in dividends has $4,500 of unearned income, and the portion above $2,700 is taxed at the parent’s rate. This is unusual when Social Security is the only income, but it can arise when a child also holds investments or receives trust distributions.
Form 8814 Is Not an Option
Some parents know about Form 8814, which lets you report certain kinds of a child’s income on your own return. That form is limited to interest, ordinary dividends, and capital gain distributions. Social Security benefits are not on the list.9Internal Revenue Service. Form 8814 – Parents Election To Report Childs Interest and Dividends
Even if your child has dividends you could elect to report on your return, the Social Security piece still has to go on your child’s own Form 1040. Folding it into your return through Form 8814 is incorrect and can trigger an IRS mismatch notice, since the SSA-1099 is tied to your child’s Social Security number.
Signing for a Child Who Cannot Sign
When your child is too young to sign, you sign on their behalf. The format is specific: write the child’s name in the signature space, then “By,” then your own signature, followed by your relationship (such as “parent” or “guardian”).10Internal Revenue Service. VITA/TCE Volunteer Resource Guide – Return Signature
E-filing software usually handles this by prompting you to sign as the responsible adult after you enter the child’s information.
A Note on State Taxes
Most states either have no income tax or fully exempt Social Security benefits. As of 2026, eight states tax Social Security to some degree: Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah, and Vermont. Each applies its own exemptions, income thresholds, and age-based exclusions, so your child’s benefits may still be fully exempt even in one of those states. If you live in any of them, check your state’s department of revenue for how its rules apply at your child’s income level.