Reply #5: How could you be paying more?

[kirby]

As an employee you pay 7.65% to Social Sec and Medicare. As an employer you also pay 7.65% to Soc Sec and Medicare (called Self-Employment tax). So that is 15.3% tax to Sec and Medicare for a self employed person. That calculator shows 33.7% going to Soc and Medicare. Of course the calculator is using the US Budget Office numbers so while you pay 15.3%, the remaining is probably being borrowed (or money that was supposed to be in the trust fund from previous generations).

Another issue is that the Soc Sec Tax is only collected on the first $102,000 of income.