Social Security and Medicare taxes are paid by almost every worker in the United States and by their employer, with the two sides splitting a combined 15.3% rate on wages under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act. Employees have 6.2% withheld for Social Security (up to an annual wage cap) and 1.45% for Medicare on every dollar earned, and employers match those amounts.1Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates Self-employed workers pay both halves themselves. A short list of groups—certain religious communities, some student workers, foreign nationals on specific visas, foreign government employees, and a subset of state and local government workers—can be exempt from part or all of these taxes.
What Employees Pay
If you work for an employer, FICA taxes come out of every paycheck automatically. The Social Security portion is 6.2% of your gross wages, but only up to an annual earnings cap called the wage base. For 2026, that cap is $184,500. Once your wages for the year hit that number, no more Social Security tax is withheld.2Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base The maximum an employee pays in Social Security tax for 2026 is $11,439.
The Medicare portion is 1.45% of all your wages with no cap at all. Whether you earn $30,000 or $3 million, the 1.45% applies to every dollar.1Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates So the standard employee share is 7.65% on wages up to the wage base and 1.45% on anything above it.
The Extra 0.9% on High Earners
Higher earners pay an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% on wages above a threshold set by filing status: $200,000 for single filers, head of household, and qualifying surviving spouses; $250,000 for married filing jointly; and $125,000 for married filing separately.3Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 560, Additional Medicare Tax Only the employee pays this surcharge; the employer does not match it.1Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates
Your employer must start withholding the 0.9% once your wages with that employer cross $200,000, regardless of your filing status.3Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 560, Additional Medicare Tax That creates two situations where the paycheck math and your actual tax bill diverge. If you’re married filing jointly and your combined wages won’t actually trigger the tax, you can claim a credit for the excess withholding when you file. If both spouses work and your combined wages push you over $250,000 but neither of you individually crosses $200,000, you may owe the tax even though nothing was withheld, so you may need to make estimated payments or adjust your W-4.4Internal Revenue Service. Questions and Answers for the Additional Medicare Tax
What Employers Pay
Employers pay a matching 6.2% for Social Security (up to the same $184,500 wage base) and 1.45% for Medicare on all wages.1Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 751, Social Security and Medicare Withholding Rates Combining both sides, 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare flow to the government on every covered dollar of wages up to the cap.
The match stops at the standard rates. Even though employers must withhold the employee’s 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax once wages cross $200,000, the business owes nothing extra of its own on that surcharge.3Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 560, Additional Medicare Tax
What the Self-Employed Pay
If you’re a freelancer, independent contractor, or sole proprietor, you pay both halves under the Self-Employment Contributions Act. The total rate is 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1401 – Rate of Tax The same $184,500 Social Security wage base applies, and the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax kicks in at the same filing-status thresholds.
You don’t apply the 15.3% to 100% of your business income. You multiply your net earnings by 92.35% first, then apply the rate.6Internal Revenue Service. Schedule SE (Form 1040) That adjustment reflects the fact that traditional employees pay FICA only on their own wages, not on their employer’s matching share, and it puts self-employed workers on roughly equal footing.
Net earnings are your gross business income minus allowable business expenses, generally figured on Schedule C.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040) If those net earnings come in under $400 for the year, you owe no self-employment tax at all.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1402 – Definitions
To soften paying both halves, the tax code lets you deduct half of your self-employment tax when calculating adjusted gross income. That deduction lowers your income tax, not the self-employment tax itself.7Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040) And because nothing is withheld from your income for you, you generally have to send estimated tax payments to the IRS four times a year, with standard deadlines on April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15 of the following year.9Internal Revenue Service. Estimated Tax
Household Employers Pay Too
Hiring someone to work in your home can turn you into an employer for FICA purposes. For 2026, the threshold is $3,000: if you pay a single domestic worker—a nanny, housekeeper, caregiver, or private cook—at least that much in cash wages during the year, you owe Social Security and Medicare taxes on all wages paid to that worker, including the first $3,000.10Social Security Administration. Employment Coverage Thresholds
You withhold the worker’s 7.65% share and pay the matching 7.65% employer share from your own funds, then report and pay by attaching Schedule H to your personal tax return.11Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Schedule H Some families cover the worker’s share instead of deducting it from the paycheck. If you do, the amount you pay on the worker’s behalf counts as additional taxable wages to the worker.
Who Is Exempt
Most workers cannot opt out of FICA. A few narrow categories can.
Members of Certain Religious Groups
If you belong to a recognized religious group with an established practice of providing for its own members, such as certain Amish or Mennonite communities, you can apply for exemption by filing Form 4029 with the IRS.12Internal Revenue Service. About Form 4029, Application for Exemption From Social Security and Medicare Taxes and Waiver of Benefits Approval permanently waives all rights to Social Security and Medicare benefits.
Students Working for Their School
If you’re enrolled at a college or university and work for that same institution, your wages are generally exempt from FICA as long as your employment is secondary to your education.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 3121 – Definitions Factors like carrying a full course load and working part-time (rather than the reverse) help determine whether the exemption applies.14eCFR. 26 CFR 31.3121(b)(10)-2
Nonresident Aliens on Certain Visas
Foreign nationals temporarily in the U.S. on F-1, J-1, or M-1 student visas are generally exempt from Social Security and Medicare taxes for up to five calendar years, as long as they remain nonresident aliens and their work is authorized by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.15Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Student Liability for Social Security and Medicare Taxes Students on Q visas may also qualify.16Internal Revenue Service. Taxation of Alien Individuals by Immigration Status – J-1 After five years, those who meet the substantial presence test become resident aliens and start owing FICA on their wages.
Foreign Government Employees
Workers employed by a foreign government in the United States, including consular officers and embassy staff, are excluded from FICA because their compensation isn’t treated as wages under U.S. tax law.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 3121 – Definitions
Some State and Local Government Employees
State and local government workers who participate in a qualifying public retirement system and whose positions are not covered under a Section 218 agreement between their state and the Social Security Administration may be exempt from Social Security tax. Since 1991, however, government employees who are not members of a qualifying retirement system and are not covered by a Section 218 agreement are generally subject to mandatory Social Security and Medicare coverage.17Internal Revenue Service. State and Local Government Employees Social Security and Medicare Coverage
What Happens If Too Much Is Withheld
If you hold two or more jobs during the year and your combined wages exceed the Social Security wage base, each employer will withhold Social Security tax independently. That can push your total Social Security withholding past the $11,439 ceiling. You claim the excess as a credit on your income tax return.18Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 608, Excess Social Security and RRTA Tax Withheld Your employers can’t stop withholding early on your word alone; each one bases withholding only on the wages it pays you.
If a single employer withholds too much Social Security or Medicare tax—say, from a payroll error—ask the employer to correct the overcollection first. If the employer won’t fix it, you can file Form 843 with the IRS to request a refund directly.19Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement
One boundary worth flagging: FICA is federal. Several states run their own payroll-level programs for things like temporary disability insurance or paid family leave, and those show up as separate deductions on your pay stub. They are not part of the Social Security and Medicare taxes described here, and rules for who pays vary by state.