Self-Employment Tax (SE Tax) — Payroll Definition

Self-Employment Tax (SE Tax) paystub meaning: The combined 15.3% Social Security and Medicare tax paid by self-employed individuals.

The combined 15.3% Social Security and Medicare tax paid by self-employed individuals.

Self-employment tax is the equivalent of FICA for people who work for themselves. Since self-employed individuals are both the employer AND employee, they pay both halves of FICA — 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare, totaling 15.3%. However, you can deduct the employer-equivalent portion (7.65%) on your personal tax return. This tax applies to net self-employment income of $400 or more.

Tax entries on a pay statement depend on taxable wages, current employee elections, filing status, pay frequency, jurisdiction, and current agency instructions. Compare the current-period amount with year-to-date totals and the employer-issued record before treating it as final.

When this term appears on a statement, read its label, current amount, year-to-date amount, pay-period context, and any adjacent rate or hours together. Resolve a mismatch with the original issuer or the cited authority rather than changing a record to force a preferred result.