By Kirk Larson

Social Security Western Washington Public Affairs Specialist

It’s that time of year again. Preparing for tax season can seem overwhelming. Some forms and paperwork might be difficult to track down. If you misplaced your Benefits Statement or haven’t received it by the end of January, we’ve made it easy for you to go online to request a replacement with my Social Security.

An SSA-1099 is a tax form Social Security mails each year in January to the more than 60 million people who receive Social Security benefits. It shows the total amount of benefits received from Social Security in the previous year so people know how much Social Security income to report to the IRS on their tax return. It will also show any voluntary federal income taxes you had withheld from your Social Security payments. Some people have to pay federal income taxes on their Social Security benefits. This usually happens only if you have other substantial income (such as wages, self-employment, interest, dividends and other taxable income that must be reported on your tax return) in addition to your benefits. To learn more about benefit taxation, go to http://www.ssa.gov/planners/taxes.

For noncitizens who live outside of the United States and received or repaid Social Security benefits last year, we’ll send form SSA-1042S instead. The forms SSA-1099 and SSA-1042S are not available for people who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

If you currently live in the United States and need a replacement form SSA-1099, we have a way for you to get a replacement quickly and easily. Go online and request a replacement form with a my Social Security account at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount. Online replacement forms are available beginning February 1, 2017.

Every working person in the U.S. should create a my Social Security account. The secure and personalized features of my Social Security are invaluable in securing a comfortable retirement — for today and tomorrow.

Kirk Larson is a Social Security Administration Public Affairs Specialist located in Seattle and serving Western Washington.