Taxes and rates: wage bases and limits
Article ID: 2000093
Overview
This article is about the rates and limits for Social Security, Medicare, federal income tax (FIT), state income tax (SIT), and state unemployment income (SUI).
Assumptions
You have employees subject to federal taxes.
Details
Wage base limits for DIY and Assisted payroll are updated by the tax table, and cannot be manually changed. To update the wage base limit for a tax for current period download the latest payroll updates.
2015 tax rate and wage base table
| 2015 – Tax Rate and Wage Base | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax | Federal or State |
ER | EE | Wage Limit |
Max Tax ER | Max Tax EE |
| Social Security | Federal | 6.2% | 6.2% | $118,500.00 | $7,347 | $7,347 |
| Medicare | Federal | See table below. | NO MAX | NO MAX | ||
| Federal Income Tax | Federal | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| FUTA | Federal | 0.6% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $42.00 | N/A |
| State Income Tax | State | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| State Unemployment | State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
Medicare:
| Employee Medicare Wages | Employee Tax Rate | Employer Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Wages equal or less than $200,000 | 1.45% | 1.45% |
| Wages greater than $200,000 | 2.35% (1.45% + 0.9%) | 1.45% |
See the IRS FAQ Questions and Answers for the Additional Medicare Tax for more information.
2014 tax rate and wage base table
| 2014 – Tax Rate and Wage Base | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax | Federal or State |
ER | EE | Wage Limit |
Max Tax ER | Max Tax EE |
| Social Security | Federal | 6.2% | 6.2% | $117,000.00 | $7,254 | $7,254 |
| Medicare | Federal | See table below. | NO MAX | NO MAX | ||
| Federal Income Tax | Federal | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| FUTA | Federal | 0.6% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $42.00 | N/A |
| State Income Tax | State | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| State Unemployment | State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
Medicare:
| Employee Medicare Wages | Employee Tax Rate | Employer Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Wages equal or less than $200,000 | 1.45% | 1.45% |
| Wages greater than $200,000 | 2.35% (1.45% + 0.9%) | 1.45% |
See the IRS FAQ Questions and Answers for the Additional Medicare Tax for more information.
2013 tax rate and wage base table
| 2013 – Tax Rate and Wage Base | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax | Federal or State |
ER | EE | Wage Limit |
Max Tax ER | Max Tax EE |
| Social Security | Federal | 6.2% | 6.2% | $113,700.00 | $7,049.40 | $7,049.40 |
| Medicare | Federal | See table below. | NO MAX | NO MAX | ||
| Federal Income Tax | Federal | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| FUTA | Federal | 0.6% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $42.00 | N/A |
| State Income Tax | State | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| State Unemployment | State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
Medicare:
| Employee Medicare Wages | Employee Tax Rate | Employer Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Wages equal or less than $200,000 | 1.45% | 1.45% |
| Wages greater than $200,000 | 2.35% (1.45% + 0.9%) | 1.45% |
See the IRS FAQ Questions and Answers for the Additional Medicare Tax for more information.
2012 tax rate and wage base table
| 2012 – Tax Rate and Wage Base | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax | Federal or State |
ER | EE | Wage Limit |
Max Tax ER | Max Tax EE |
| Social Security | Federal | 6.2% | 4.2% | $110,100.00 | $6,826.20 | $4,624.20 |
| Medicare | Federal | 1.45% | 1.45% | NO LIMIT | NO MAX | NO MAX |
| Federal Income Tax | Federal | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| FUTA | Federal | 0.6% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $42.00 | N/A |
| State Income Tax | State | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| State Unemployment | State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
2011 tax rate and wage base table
| 2011 – Tax Rate and Wage Base | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax | Federal or State |
ER | EE | Wage Limit |
Max Tax ER | Max Tax EE |
| Social Security | Federal | 6.2% | 4.2% | $106,800.00 | $6,621.60 | $4,485.60 |
| Medicare | Federal | 1.45% | 1.45% | NO LIMIT | NO MAX | NO MAX |
| Federal Income Tax | Federal | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| FUTA (after 6/30) | Federal | 0.6% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $42.00 | N/A |
| FUTA (before 7/1) | Federal | 0.8% | N/A | $7,000.00 | $56.00 | N/A |
| State Income Tax | State | N/A | Varies | NO LIMIT | N/A | NO MAX |
| State Unemployment | State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies |
Notes:
- For more information about Social Security and Medicare, visit the Social Security Administration web site.
- For information about state taxes, visit your state tax agency’s official web site.
- If you earned more than the maximum in any year but had only one job, the amount shown in the Your Taxed Social Security Earnings column is only the maximum amount. If you had more than one job, the total that is recorded can be more than the maximum. However, only the maximum amount is used to calculate your benefit estimates.
- When you have more than one job in a year, each of your employers must withhold SS taxes without regard to what other employers withhold. Your total withheld Social Security taxes can be in excess of the limit. This extra amount can be refunded to you after you file your personal income taxes at the end of the year.