From the editor: A reader sent me a link to this 2019 article detailing the tremendous impact and financial boost undocumented migrants give to our Social Security and Medicare programs, along with millions in tax dollars, most with no current prospect to ever benefit from these same programs:
Undocumented immigrants quietly pay billions into Social Security and receive no benefits
If all undocumented immigrants were deported today, next year’s Social Security trust funds would have approximately $13 billion less for benefit payouts. It’s a considerable loss of dollars, especially when it’s projected that the Social Security funds will be depleted by 2034.
According to New American Economy, undocumented immigrants contributed $13 billion into the Social Security funds in 2016 and $3 billion to Medicare. Three years prior, the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, Stephen Goss, wrote a report that estimated undocumented immigrants contributed $12 billion into Social Security.
Approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants live in the U.S. with no legal authorization to work, yet an estimated 8 million do, both on and off the books. Since undocumented immigrants don’t have Social Security numbers and are not authorized to work legally in the U.S., they are not eligible for any Social Security benefits, whether they’ve paid into the system or not.
How undocumented immigrants pay into Social Security
Payroll tax, the 12 percent tax taken out of salaried workers’ paychecks, split between employer and employee, primarily funds Social Security, accounting for 88 percent of the payouts in 2017. Undocumented workers typically use a fake SSN or someone else’s SSN when applying for salaried jobs. Only a handful of U.S. states require employers to check an employee’s eligibility and their SSN through E-Verify, a Department of Homeland Security database. Other states have varying levels of E-Verify requirements, from partial to none.
Undocumented immigrants’ payments into the Social Security funds become a murkier matter when they are self-employed. By law, anyone earning an income while in the United States is required to pay taxes, even if they are breaking other laws in doing so.
“The government, the IRS, will never say no to your tax dollars,” said Abigail Zapote, the executive director of the D.C.-based nonprofit Latinos for a Secure Retirement, with a laugh.
Many undocumented sole proprietors, from gardeners to tech startup founders, pay self-employment taxes through an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, legally issued by the IRS. It would be easy enough not to pay anything to the IRS, especially if paid in cash. But many undocumented immigrants do file with an ITIN to be in good standing with the government should there be an opportunity to apply for a green card or citizenship in the future. Undocumented immigrants who pay self-employment taxes via an ITIN also pay into the Social Security funds, however there are no statistics on exact dollar amounts.
Undocumented immigrants’ contributions to the Social Security funds help its finances, especially because they are not receiving benefits, explains Monique Morrissey, an economist who focuses on retirement at the Economic Policy Institute, a D.C.-based think tank. But since “it’s done so on the backs of the more vulnerable people in society,” she said, “it’s not a good thing.”
When your social security card is stolen, get a police report and keep it in a safe place. Every year, go to the social security office and tell them that the places and earnings listed in your form do not belong to you. Also, if you want to catch the person that stole your card, the police will help you but the thief is always in the run and it is hard to catch them.
ReplyDeleteWell actually no. I deal with this issue and BPD has no jurisdiction. The law is if after two years of verifying the fraud SS on request must issue a new SS card. Endless complaints have been filed on this issue with our congressman. The Brownsville and Miami offices do not issue new social security cards. SS office automatically sends a notice to the employers while you sit there. They fire all the employees who then give them a new valid number. They are still there. SS does not investigate. Why would they want to lose the billions paid into the system. The real criminal is the government. They expose you to fraud, refuse to prosecute, refuse to allow you to sign the fraud affidavit, while threatening to deduct the amount from your social security. You have to file an appeal and will win. The government is the criminal here. I would never vote for Myra, but it is time Vicente Gonzalez explain why he ignores all the complaints on the issue. The answer is simple. They tell him it will cost SS billions of dollars so he ignores all the complaints of those who are victim to fraud. It does not end there. If they use your SSN for credit and do not pay the bill, you will pay higher insurance rates, and in fact higher deposits on an apartment. Good luck getting credit.
DeleteThe prices of products will go higher. Few people want to work with cilantro, melons, oranges, fishing etc because of the low pay, long hours and difficult work. The workers that do that job, do it because that is the only job they can get. When they are gone, few legal people will work picking up cilantro for one dollar a day and no benefits. So the Americans will buy the cilantro from Mexico and sell it to American shoppers with a high price to make a profit.
ReplyDeleteSo prices are high right now, but with Trump prices are going to go higher.