Schedule SE: Self-Employment Tax (2024)
Federal · IRS · Used for tax years 2024
Schedule SE (Form 1040) calculates self-employment tax and the deduction for one-half of that tax. It reports self-employment earnings and includes optional methods for figuring net earnings from farm and nonfarm income.
Who files this form
For tax year 2024, you must file Schedule SE if either:
- The amount on Schedule SE, line 4c, is $400 or more.
- You had church employee income of $108.28 or more.
Church employee income means wages from a church or qualified church-controlled organization that has elected an exemption from employer social security and Medicare taxes. It does not include income from services as a minister, member of a religious order, or Christian Science practitioner.
Self-employment tax applies regardless of your age, even if you already receive Social Security or Medicare benefits.
Exceptions and special cases: If you received IRS approval for Form 4029 or Form 4361, you may not need to file. Special filing rules also apply to certain Conservation Reserve Program payments and income covered by an international social security agreement. Even with a loss or little self-employment income, filing using an optional method may benefit you.
What you'll need
Have your name and Social Security number ready, as shown on your tax return. Depending on your income, you may also need:
- Schedule C: Net business profit or loss from line 31.
- Schedule F: Net farm profit or loss from line 34, and applicable Conservation Reserve Program payments from line 4b.
- Schedule K-1 (Form 1065): Partnership self-employment earnings from box 14, code A, and other applicable amounts.
- Forms W-2: Social Security wages and tips from boxes 3 and 7, plus church employee income if applicable.
- Form 4137 or Form 8919: Applicable Social Security amounts from line 10 of either form.
If you use an optional method, you also need the gross farm or nonfarm income amounts identified in Part II. The nonfarm optional method also requires information about your prior self-employment earnings and how many years you have used that method.
If you reduce partnership earnings by allowable expenses before entering them on Schedule SE, attach an explanation.
How to file
Attach Schedule SE to Form 1040, 1040-SR, 1040-SS, or 1040-NR, as applicable.
- Enter the self-employment tax from line 12 on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4, or Form 1040-SS, Part I, line 3.
- Enter the deduction from line 13 on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 15. If you file Form 1040-SS, skip line 13.
- If both spouses have self-employment income, each must file a separate Schedule SE, even on a joint return.
The provided text does not give a mailing address or e-filing directions. Instructions and the latest information are available at IRS.gov/ScheduleSE.
Common mistakes
- Assuming an optional method always lowers your tax. The instructions caution that optional methods may help you, but they may also increase your self-employment tax.
- Using the nonfarm optional method too many times. You may use it for only five years. Those years do not have to be consecutive.
- Leaving Schedule SE off Form 1040-SS. The instructions remind residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico to file Schedule SE with Form 1040-SS to report self-employment taxes.
Questions people ask
Do I need a separate Schedule SE for each business?
No. Combine the net earnings from all your businesses subject to self-employment tax on one Schedule SE. A loss from one business reduces income from another.
Can my spouse and I share one Schedule SE on a joint return?
No. If both spouses have self-employment income, each must file a separate Schedule SE. Enter the combined self-employment tax on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4.
What if my only income subject to self-employment tax is church employee income?
Skip lines 1 through 4b, enter zero on line 4c, and go to line 5a. Income from services as a minister, member of a religious order, or Christian Science practitioner is not church employee income.
Can I deduct part of my self-employment tax?
Line 13 figures a deduction equal to 50% of the self-employment tax on line 12. Enter it on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 15. Form 1040-SS filers skip line 13.
Can I change between the regular and optional methods after filing?
Yes. The instructions say to file Form 1040-X to change from the regular method to an optional method, or from an optional method to the regular method.