Is is possible to claim social security and medicare tax back?

vsreeniv

Registered Users (C)
Hello
I am trying to figure out if we are eligble for a refund of the social security and medicare taxes if we leave US after 6 years of H1-B employment?
 
No refunds, but if your home country has a bilateral agreement with USA then you will get the retirement benefits when you retire in that country.
 
Plus...you should have minimum 40 credits to get social security benefits. Every year you get 4 credits (1 per quarter). That means you should work in this country for atleast 10 years in order to eligible for social security benefits.

No refunds, but if your home country has a bilateral agreement with USA then you will get the retirement benefits when you retire in that country.
 
What percentage does tax take in a monthly income?

Please could anyone help with the following questions?

1. How much tax (%) is taken from ones monthly salary assuming one earns a monthly gross of $5000?

2. I undersatnd a US citizen (nurturalised) who decides to move back to his/her native country would still be required to pay tax to the US government; how far is this true?
 
How much tax (%) is taken from ones monthly salary assuming one earns a monthly gross of $5000?

That's far too broad a question to answer. Do you have children? Are you single or married? Are you contributing to an IRA, 401K, 403b or HSA? What state do you live in?

I undersatnd a US citizen (nurturalised) who decides to move back to his/her native country would still be required to pay tax to the US government; how far is this true?

It's true no matter how far away from the US you are. :)
 
Plus...you should have minimum 40 credits to get social security benefits. Every year you get 4 credits (1 per quarter). That means you should work in this country for atleast 10 years in order to eligible for social security benefits.

Hmm.. not exactly. You can earn 4 credits per year, but each credit is earned based on what you earn. For 2008 every 1050 earned gains you 1 credit point. So if you are in IT and on H1, you pretty much get all your credits within the first month or two of the year.

Also, the bilateral agreement is usually done such that the country where you retire will give you the benefits based on that country's law. The agreements are usually just saying that the work you did here and taxes you paid here will be considered towards requirements for any benefits in your "retirement country".
 
Thanks for all your responses.
Does India have a bilateral agreement with US?
Also if I paid into the pool for 10 years and got my 40 credits, does it mean that I will get the benefits? (I might have to leave the country after 10 years without a green card- thanks to retrogression)
 
No. India doesn't yet have a bilateral agreement. Though some news agencies seem to say that it is in the works.
 
Hmm.. not exactly. You can earn 4 credits per year, but each credit is earned based on what you earn. For 2008 every 1050 earned gains you 1 credit point. So if you are in IT and on H1, you pretty much get all your credits within the first month or two of the year.

I don't think the above is possible, i.e. that high salary earners can get their 40 credits done a lot faster. Do you have any reference or link that says this?

Actually, a person cannot receive more than four credits for any year. You end up having to work for 10 years to get 40 credits.
 
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