Ask Me Help Desk - Income tax responsibility for Social Security Disability

Quote:

Originally Posted by mannme

I was collecting Social Security Disability before I started back to work last year in Feb/07. When I started back to work I called the SS office and advised i was going back to work and they advised I would continue to collect my checks for 9 months. After the 9months I still can not get them to stop sending me checks. Now they have sent me a form to fill out for last years income. How will they use this information? Are they going to want their 9months of checks back? Should I go ahead and file my income tax for 2007 with this added SS income? I had an annual income of 43k last year. Thanks from Texas

I think you have to file claiming the income you actually received, SS included. If the money has to be sent back, then you amend your return.

As far as you not being able to get them to stop sending you checks - I would trust you have been sending them back? If you've deposited them, yes, they will want them back, it's income to you right now (or at leat for 2007) and if you don't comply they can charge you interest on the money. I would think at some point it becomes a fraud situation or minimally a lien against any SS (retirement) benefits.

Hopefully your communication with SS has been in writing.

I'm aware of a situation in which SS checks kept coming five months after the person's death - and for five months the family kept sending the checks back. Eventually SS caught on!