Donald Trump promised tax-free Social Security for seniors. So what’s the holdup?

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Social Security is simply a cardinal income root for millions of retired Americans, and these benefits are taxed astatine the national level.

The thresholds astatine which taxes connected benefits use are precise low: Benefits are taxed for seniors whose combined income (the full of adjusted gross income, non-taxable involvement income and 50% of yearly Social Security benefits) exceeds $25,000 astatine the idiosyncratic level, oregon $32,000 astatine the associated tax-filing level. Although taxing status benefits whitethorn look odd, the intent of the taxes is clear: those funds guarantee the aboriginal of the program.

But President Donald Trump’s run promise, “Seniors should not wage taxes connected Social Security — and they won't,” was upheld successful the One Big Beautiful Bill Act successful July 2025, which introduced caller taxation deductions for seniors based connected income eligibility — benignant of.

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While the President has declared that Social Security benefits are present tax-free galore times, the world of what the Act really allows is alternatively different. Senate fund reconciliation rules forestall sweeping changes to the Social Security program. What seniors volition get is simply a impermanent $6,000 taxation deduction betwixt 2025 and 2028 (1).

Matt Gardner, a elder chap astatine the Institute connected Taxation and Economic Policy, explains that this deduction is gradually phased retired for taxpayers with incomes implicit $75,000, oregon $150,000 for joined couples. Moreover, the $6000 simplification isn’t apt to payment those who request it most: low-income retirees who already wage debased oregon nary taxes connected their benefits (2).

The world is that wholly eliminating taxes connected Social Security could origin important harm to the program. Here’s why.

Social Security gets astir of its backing from payroll taxation revenue, according to the SSA, but the programme besides gets wealth by taxing immoderate seniors connected their monthly benefits.

And the fig of seniors who are continuing to wage into the programme is rising owed to a operation of factors — 1 of which is that, portion Social Security benefits get an yearly cost-of-living adjustment, the thresholds for combined income person not been adjusted since 1993.