How it works
Provisional income is your AGI excluding Social Security, plus tax-exempt interest, plus 50% of your benefit. Below $25,000 ($32,000 married filing jointly), none of your benefit is taxable; above $34,000 ($44,000 joint), up to 85% is, following IRS Publication 915's Worksheet 1 exactly. A single filer with $20,000 in benefits and $30,000 of other income owes tax on $9,600 of it (48%); a married couple with $30,000 in benefits and $120,000 of other income hits the 85% cap, $25,500 taxable. Married filing separately and lived with your spouse during the year? The $25,000/$34,000 thresholds don't apply -- see the taxability guide for that rule and both worked examples in full.