Who taxes US social security?

4POSTS

2 months ago

I have already reviewed some of the other questions about this topic, but both of the ones I found include extraneous situations that don't address this core question.

I have also checked out ChatGPT, but even there, the answer flips.

Simple question: We will get the long-term residency Visa to live in Italy permanently.

We will be renting an apartment for the long term.

My social security and my wife's, if we file jointly, would result in $0 federal taxes in the US.

I have seen answers to this question that go both ways. One way is that for an American expat living in Italy, only the US can tax Social Security. The other is that Italy, despite the tax treaty, CAN tax social security.

Are there others out there that fit into this simple scenario and have lived in Italy long enough to answer this question?

We understand that if we move into a 7% Regime that we will probably pay that rate. But after that, who taxes us, the US or Italy?

Thank you all.

Bob

1 member reacted to this post

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Cheryl Moderator

16219POSTS

last month

Hello Bob,

You may want to check past threads on this topic, as they can provide useful insights if the topic has already been covered on the Italy forum.

Hopefully, this message will also help bring more attention to your question so that other members with experience in Italy can share their input.

All the best,

Cheryl

Expat.com team

jimds Member

13POSTS

3 days ago

@bobestremera

You are generally taxed based on tax residency, not citizenship alone. Once you establish tax residency in Italy, Italy taxes your worldwide income, including Social Security and pensions, subject to the U.S.–Italy tax treaty and applicable exclusions/credits.

For most people living in Italy, Italy becomes the primary taxing authority on that income. U.S. citizens still generally must file U.S. tax returns, but the treaty is designed to prevent double taxation.

If you are not in one of the qualifying 7% tax regime comuni, ordinary Italian tax brackets apply, with income above €50k currently falling into the 43% bracket.

There are caveats regarding how certain income is categorized and treated in each country — especially rental income, interest, capital gains, and other passive income — which is why a CPA familiar with both U.S. and Italian taxation is important.

Yauza New member

5POSTS

Yesterday

@bobestremera

Read these articles in the Tax Treaty with Italy first:

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/internat … -documents

Since I am both a citizen of the USA and Itay. So, I will have to pay taxes on my Social Security to Italy. But if you are not a citizen of Itay, it is unclear and you will need to get a definitive answer.