Are alimony payments considered earnings for Social Security purposes?

In Washington, alimony payments are considered earnings for Social Security purposes. As such, the payments are counted and reported as income for Social Security benefits. Social Security will count alimony payments as part of your annual earnings when calculating your retirement, disability, or survivor benefits. For any alimony payments made after January 1, 2019, both the payer and the recipient must report the payments to the Social Security Administration (SSA). When completing the Form SSA-1099, Box 1 should show the amount of alimony payments received by the payee, and Box 5 should show the amount of alimony payments paid by the payer. To receive credit for alimony payments, the alimony must be part of a written separation agreement or a court order. Payments that are part of a property settlement are not considered alimony and are not reported to the SSA. The payee should also be aware that they may be responsible for paying taxes on the alimony payments they receive. If there was any confusion or dispute over whether or not the payments being made were alimony, it is important to get clarification from a lawyer or the court. It is important to remember that alimony payments are considered earnings for Social Security purposes, and should be reported to the SSA as such.

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Are alimony payments considered earnings for Social Security purposes?

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