There is no IRS form numbered 1044. Almost everyone searching for a “1044 tax form” is looking for Form 1040-SS, the U.S. Self-Employment Tax Return filed by residents of Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories. The confusion usually traces back to the form’s older name, Form 1040-PR, which the IRS retired after tax year 2022. Form 1040-SS is not a general income tax return. It exists so that self-employed workers in the territories pay into Social Security and Medicare and earn credits toward future retirement, disability, and survivor benefits.
What Form 1040-SS Is For
Bona fide residents of Puerto Rico generally do not file a standard federal income tax return, because income from Puerto Rico sources is excluded from federal gross income under Internal Revenue Code Section 933.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 933 – Income From Sources Within Puerto Rico Local income tax goes to Puerto Rico’s Department of Treasury (Hacienda). Federal self-employment tax, though, is a separate obligation, and Form 1040-SS is how the IRS collects it.2Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1040-SS, U.S. Self-Employment Tax Return
The tax funds two programs: Social Security at 12.4 percent and Medicare at 2.9 percent, for a combined 15.3 percent.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1401 – Rate of Tax Employees split those contributions with their employer; self-employed workers pay both halves. The IRS passes the earnings data it receives on the form to the Social Security Administration, which uses it to build your benefit record.
Why You Might Have Heard “1040-PR”
For tax years 2022 and earlier, self-employed Puerto Rico residents filed Form 1040-PR, printed entirely in Spanish. The IRS discontinued that form starting with tax year 2023 and consolidated all territory filers onto Form 1040-SS, which now covers Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.4Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1040 (PR), Self-Employment Tax Return – Puerto Rico2Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1040-SS, U.S. Self-Employment Tax Return Older guides referring to a “1044” or “1040-PR” are pointing at what is now Form 1040-SS.
Who Has to File
You must file Form 1040-SS if you are a bona fide resident of Puerto Rico (or another U.S. territory covered by the form) and your net earnings from self-employment reach $400 or more for the year.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 6017 – Self-Employment Tax Returns Net earnings means profit after business expenses, not gross receipts. The rule sweeps in freelancers, consultants, independent contractors, and anyone running a side business.
Bona fide residency generally requires physical presence in Puerto Rico for at least 183 days during the tax year, along with your permanent home, personal ties, and economic ties being closer to the island than to anywhere else.6Internal Revenue Service. Publication 570 (2024), Tax Guide for Individuals With Income From U.S. Territories If you do not meet the residency test, you likely need a regular Form 1040 instead.
Wages already subject to Social Security and Medicare withholding by an employer do not need to be reported on Form 1040-SS. But if you also have more than $400 in net self-employment income on the side, you owe self-employment tax on that side income and must file.7Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes) The rule applies regardless of your age, and it applies even if you already collect Social Security or Medicare.
How Much You’ll Owe
Before applying the tax rates, you multiply your net earnings by 92.35 percent. That adjustment mirrors the deduction an employer would get for its share of payroll taxes and keeps you from paying tax on the tax itself.7Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes) If your net profit is $60,000, you calculate self-employment tax on $55,410.
The 12.4 percent Social Security portion applies only up to a wage base of $184,500 in 2026.8Social Security Administration. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet Above that amount, only Medicare tax continues. If you also have wages from a job and the combined total tops the cap, you can claim a credit for any excess Social Security tax paid.9Social Security Administration. If You Are Self-Employed
Higher earners owe an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9 percent on self-employment income above $200,000 ($250,000 for married filing jointly).3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1401 – Rate of Tax This is reported on Form 1040-SS in addition to the standard Medicare tax.10Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 560, Additional Medicare Tax If you have wages already subject to the Additional Medicare Tax through withholding, the $200,000 threshold is reduced by those wages.
What You Get for Filing: Social Security Credits
Every year you file and pay self-employment tax, you earn credits toward Social Security. In 2026, one credit is granted for every $1,890 in covered earnings, up to four credits per year, so about $7,560 in net self-employment income locks in the maximum four credits.11Social Security Administration. Social Security Credits Retirement benefits require 40 credits, roughly ten years of covered work.
Skipping a year when you owed the tax does more than trigger penalties. The credits you would have earned that year are gone, and missing credits can shrink your future monthly benefit or push back eligibility.
Deadlines and How to File
The filing deadline is April 15 of the year following the tax year. A 2026 return is due April 15, 2027.12Internal Revenue Service. When to File Filing Form 4868, or making an electronic payment by the original due date, gets you an automatic six-month extension to October 15. An extension does not extend the time to pay; interest and penalties still run on any unpaid balance from April 15.
Form 1040-SS can be filed electronically through tax software or a tax professional, and the IRS Free File program is available to eligible taxpayers.13Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1040-SS (2025)14Internal Revenue Service. Processing Status for Tax Forms15Internal Revenue Service. Why It May Take Longer Than 21 Days for Some Taxpayers to Receive Their Federal Refund
To compute what goes on the return, you use Schedule C or Schedule F to figure your net business profit and Schedule SE to calculate self-employment tax. The tax from Schedule SE is entered on Part I, Line 3 of Form 1040-SS. Multiple businesses are combined into a single total on Schedule SE.
Quarterly Estimated Payments
If you expect to owe $1,000 or more in self-employment tax, the IRS generally requires quarterly estimated payments rather than a single April payment. The 2026 due dates are April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15, 2027. You can skip the January payment if you file the return and pay in full by February 1, 2027.
Missing an installment can produce an underpayment penalty based on how much was underpaid, how long it stayed unpaid, and the IRS’s quarterly interest rate, which was 7 percent in the first quarter of 2026.16Internal Revenue Service. Quarterly Interest Rates You avoid the penalty if your total tax owed is under $1,000, if you paid at least 90 percent of the current year’s tax, or if you paid 100 percent of the prior year’s tax.17Internal Revenue Service. Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals Penalty
Penalties for Filing Late or Not Paying
Two penalties can run at the same time. The failure-to-file penalty is 5 percent of the unpaid tax per month (or part of a month), capped at 25 percent; when the return is more than 60 days late, the minimum is $525 or 100 percent of the tax owed, whichever is less.18Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 653, IRS Notices and Bills, Penalties and Interest Charges The failure-to-pay penalty is 0.5 percent per month, also capped at 25 percent, and drops to 0.25 percent per month if you have an approved payment plan in place.19Internal Revenue Service. Failure to Pay Penalty
Interest accrues on any unpaid balance from the original due date. Because the failure-to-file penalty runs ten times faster than the failure-to-pay penalty, filing on time is worthwhile even when you cannot pay the balance in full.
Form 1040-SS Does Not Replace Your Puerto Rico Return
Filing Form 1040-SS satisfies your federal self-employment tax obligation only. You still owe Puerto Rico income tax on your local earnings and must file the corresponding local return (commonly the Planilla, Form 482) with Hacienda. The two returns fund different systems, and their deadlines may differ, so check both.