12 Mar Where do I show self-employment taxes on my return?

Q. I am self-employed and I overpaid my 2020 self-employment tax. I cannot find where on my Form 1040 to report tax that I have already paid in order to receive a refund. Can you advise?
— Working

A. Sure thing.

Self-employment tax, which is required if a taxpayer generates self-employment income of $400 or more, is one of many taxes that are reported as part of Form 1040.

After calculating your self-employment tax on Schedule SE, enter the Line 12 tax on Schedule 2, Line 4, said Neil Becourtney, a certified public accountant and tax partner with CohnReznick in Holmdel.

The total of other taxes on Schedule 2 in turn should be entered on Form 1040, Line 23, he said.

“Your tax payments, whether withholding (line 25) or estimated tax payments (line 26), do not get allocated to regular tax versus self-employment tax,” Becourtney said. “If your total tax payments exceed your total tax liability, you will be overpaid and can either receive a refund or apply the overpayment toward 2021 estimated taxes.”

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This story was originally published on March 12, 2021.

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