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Is Social Security Taxed Differently If You're A Green Card Holder Living Outside Of The U.S.?

Is SS taxed differently if you are a green card holder and living outside of the U.S.?
How is SS affected if the green card expires?
Are the answers different if the person has no work record and receives SS from a U.S citizen spouse's record?
What happens if the spouse dies and the person is not a citizen and lives outside of the U.S.?

Hi,

My expertise is limited to Social Security benefits, and taxation of Social Security benefits is an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) provision. So, I'm unable to fully answer your questions.

What I can tell you is that if you're not a U.S. citizen and you're receiving Social Security benefits outside of the U.S., your benefits could be subject to a 30% tax withholding. For more information on this provision, refer to the following Social Security website: https://www.ssa.gov/international/AlienTax_reference_2.html.

If you're eligible for spousal or survivor benefits on another person's Social Security record, you may not be able to receive those benefits at all if you're a non-U.S. citizen and you're residing outside of the U.S. Various exceptions apply depending on your country of citizenship and your country of residence. For more information, refer to the following Social Security publication: https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10137.pdf.

Best, Jerry

Category: 
Posted: 
Jan 17 2019 - 10:40am
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