1818. The Annual Report Form

1818.1 How do you file an annual report?

In 1997, we amended our regulations to state that for annual reports due on and after April 15, 1997, SSA may consider the Wage and Tax Statement (W-2) information and self-employment tax return information to be the report required under 203(h) of the Social Security Act. Beneficiaries will need to contact us to provide additional information only when the information on the W-2 and self-employment tax return, along with other information on our records will not allow us to correctly determine benefits payable.

Although we may accept W-2 information and special payment information from employers, the beneficiary still has primary responsibility for making sure that the earnings we use for deductions purposes is correct.

1818.2 What information do you need for your annual report?

The following summarizes the information you need for your annual report:

1. Your total amount of wages (before payroll deductions) earned during the taxable year for which the report is being made;

2. Your total net earnings or net loss from self-employment for the taxable year;

3. Months during a grace year (see §1807) in which you did not earn over the monthly exempt amount as an employee and did not perform substantial services in self-employment; and

4. An estimate of your expected total earnings (wages and net earnings from self-employment) for the next taxable year.

Last Revised: Jul. 31, 2006