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FICA & Medicare Payroll Tax Rates for 2013

January 8, 2013 by Ed Becker

2013 FICA and Medicare Tax Rates

The rate is 7.65% in total: 6.2% for the Social Security portion and 1.45% for Medicare.

FYI, this had been reduced by 2% to 4.2% over the past few years as part of  payroll tax holiday to help with the economic recovery. All of the fiscal cliff discussions did not address this and the rate has reverted back to what it was 2 years ago

Social Security

The first $113,700 of wages is taxed at 6.2% for Social Security. Anything above this amount is not taxed.

Medicare Tax

This is taxed at 1.45% of wages and there is no wage base limit.

New in 2013

Employers must withhold a 0.9% additional Medicare from wages paid to an employee in excess of $200,000 in a calendar year. Employers are required to begin withholding additional Medicare Tax in the pay period in which wages in excess of $200,000 are paid to an employee and continue to withhold it each pay period until the end of the calendar year.
 
This is not well known, but will be soon to wage earners hitting this threshold.
More to come on this topic if Congress changes their mind.

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