Whether you must file depends on your total income, not just your SSDI
You do not automatically have to file a federal income tax return just because you receive SSDI. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does not count SSDI as taxable income. However, you must file if your total income — including wages, self-employment earnings, interest, dividends, and other sources — exceeds the filing threshold for your age and filing status. SSDI itself stays off the calculation, but anything else you earned that year counts.
The filing threshold changes each year and depends on whether you are single, married, or head of household. For 2024, a single person under 65 must file if their non-SSDI income exceeds $14,600. A married person filing jointly with a spouse under 65 must file if combined non-SSDI income exceeds $29,200. These thresholds are higher if you or your spouse is 65 or older. The IRS publishes updated thresholds each January on its website.
Even if you fall below the threshold, filing a return may still benefit you. If you had taxes withheld from wages or are may have access to to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), filing lets you recover that money as a refund. Many people on SSDI who work part-time or have other income find that filing results in a refund larger than the taxes they owed.
Key Takeaways
- SSDI payments themselves are never taxable income, so they do not count toward your filing threshold.
- You must file if your non-SSDI income (wages, self-employment, interest, dividends) exceeds the IRS threshold for your age and filing status.
- The filing threshold for 2024 is $14,600 for a single person under 65 and $29,200 for a married couple filing jointly, both under 65.
- Filing a return is often worth doing even below the threshold if you had taxes withheld or may be may have access to to the Earned Income Tax Credit.
- You can file online for free through IRS Free File or use Form 1040-SR if you are 65 or older.
How SSDI is treated differently from other income sources
The IRS excludes SSDI from taxable income under federal law. This means that when you calculate whether you must file, you ignore SSDI entirely. If you received $1,500 in SSDI per month and earned $10,000 in wages during the year, your taxable income for filing purposes is $10,000 — not $28,000. The SSDI does not appear on your tax return and does not increase your tax burden.
This rule applies only to SSDI. Other disability-related payments may be taxable. For example, workers' compensation is usually not taxable, but taxable disability payments from a private insurance policy or employer plan may be. If you receive payments from sources other than SSDI, check the tax documents you receive (such as a 1099 form) to see whether those payments are taxable.
Because SSDI is not taxable, the Social Security Administration (SSA) does not report your SSDI to the IRS on a tax form. You will not receive a 1099 or other tax document for SSDI. You may receive a Social Security Benefit Statement (SSA-1099) for informational purposes, but it is not used for tax filing.
When you must file even with SSDI income
You must file a return if your non-SSDI income exceeds the threshold, regardless of how much SSDI you receive. The most common scenario is working while on SSDI. If you earn wages from a job, those wages count toward the filing threshold. If you are self-employed, your net self-employment income counts. If you have a spouse who works, their income counts if you file jointly.
Other income sources that trigger a filing requirement include interest from a savings account or certificate of deposit, dividends from stocks or mutual funds, capital gains from selling property or investments, and rental income. Even small amounts add up. If you are under 65 and have $14,600 or more in combined non-SSDI income, you must file.
If you are married and file jointly, the threshold is higher, but both spouses' income counts. If you are married and file separately, each spouse has a lower threshold ($1 for married filing separately if either spouse has any interest income). Most couples find filing jointly is more advantageous, but the filing requirement applies either way.
When you do not have to file but should consider it
If your non-SSDI income is below the threshold, you are not required to file. However, filing is often worth doing anyway. If your employer withheld federal income tax from your paychecks, filing a return allows you to claim a refund of that tax. Many people on SSDI who work part-time have taxes withheld but owe little or no tax because their income is low. Filing recovers the withheld amount.
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is another reason to file even if you are not required to. The EITC is a refundable credit for people with low to moderate earned income. If you work and your income is below the EITC limit (which varies by filing status and number of dependents), you may be may have access to to a credit of several hundred to several thousand dollars. You must file a return to claim the EITC, even if you owe no tax.
If you have dependents, you may also be may have access to to the Child Tax Credit or other credits that require filing. The key point is that filing is optional below the threshold, but the refund or credits you receive often make it worthwhile. The IRS Free File program allows you to file for free if your income is below a certain level.
How to determine your filing threshold by age and status
| Filing Status | Age | 2024 Threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Single | Under 65 | $14,600 |
| Single | 65 or older | $18,350 |
| Married filing jointly | Both under 65 | $29,200 |
| Married filing jointly | One spouse 65 or older | $30,750 |
| Married filing jointly | Both 65 or older | $32,300 |
| Head of household | Under 65 | $18,950 |
| Head of household | 65 or older | $23,700 |
The thresholds shown above are for the 2024 tax year (filed in 2025). The IRS adjusts these amounts each year for inflation, so the 2025 thresholds will be different. You can find the current year's thresholds on the IRS website or in the instructions to Form 1040.
Your age on December 31 of the tax year determines which threshold applies. If you turn 65 on December 31, 2024, you use the "65 or older" threshold for the 2024 tax year. If you turn 65 on January 1, 2025, you use the "under 65" threshold for 2024.
What happens if you do not file when you should
If you owe tax and do not file, the IRS will eventually contact you. The agency matches income reported by employers and financial institutions to tax returns filed. If you have W-2 income or 1099 income that the IRS knows about, and you do not file a return, the IRS will send you a notice. Penalties and interest accrue on unpaid tax, and the longer you wait, the larger the debt becomes.
If you do not owe tax but should have filed to claim a refund, there is no penalty. However, you can only claim a refund for the past three years. If you are may have access to to a refund for 2021 but do not file until 2025, you can still claim it. But if you wait until 2026, the 2021 refund is lost.
If you are on SSDI and working, staying current with tax filing also protects your work incentive benefits. Some work incentives, such as the Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS), require you to report your earnings to the SSA. Filing a tax return creates a clear record of your income that you can use when reporting to the SSA.
How to file your taxes with SSDI income
You file taxes on SSDI the same way as anyone else: using Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR (if you are 65 or older). You list your non-SSDI income on the appropriate lines. You do not list SSDI anywhere on the return because it is not taxable. If you have self-employment income, you also file Schedule C and Schedule SE to calculate self-employment tax.
The IRS Free File program allows you to file for free if your income is below a certain threshold (usually around $79,000 for 2024, but this changes yearly). Many tax software providers offer free filing through this program. If your income exceeds the Free File limit, you can still file online using paid tax software or hire a tax professional.
If you are 65 or older, Form 1040-SR is designed specifically for you and may be easier to use than Form 1040. Both forms produce the same result. You can file electronically (e-file) or by mail. E-filing is faster and reduces errors, and the IRS processes refunds more quickly for e-filed returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to report my SSDI to the IRS when I file?
No. SSDI is not taxable income, so it does not appear anywhere on your tax return. You only report your non-SSDI income (wages, self-employment, interest, dividends, and other sources). The IRS does not need to know about your SSDI.
What if I earned money from work while on SSDI?
Your wages count toward the filing threshold. If your wages plus any other non-SSDI income exceeds the threshold for your age and filing status, you must file. You report your wages on Form 1040 the same way anyone else does. SSDI and wages are separate — the SSDI does not reduce your filing requirement, but it also does not increase your tax.
Can I file jointly with my spouse if only one of us receives SSDI?
Yes. When filing jointly, you combine both spouses' non-SSDI income and compare it to the married filing jointly threshold. The spouse receiving SSDI does not report it on the return. The spouse with other income reports that income normally. The filing requirement depends on the combined non-SSDI income of both spouses.
What if I owe taxes but cannot pay?
Contact the IRS to set up a payment plan. You can request an installment agreement to pay over time, which stops penalties from growing as quickly. The IRS also offers an Offer in Compromise for people who cannot pay the full amount, though this is harder to obtain. Do not ignore a tax bill — the longer you wait, the more interest and penalties accumulate.
Will filing taxes affect my SSDI benefits?
Filing a tax return does not affect your SSDI benefits. SSDI is not means-tested, so your income does not change your benefit amount. However, if you are working, you must report your earnings to the SSA separately. The SSA uses your earnings to determine whether you are still disabled and to explore work incentive rules. Filing a tax return creates a record of your income that you can use when reporting to the SSA.