This Schedule SE 2026 guide explains the IRS Self-Employment Tax (Schedule SE). Schedule SE calculates the Social Security and Medicare tax associated with covered self-employment earnings. It is separate from the regular income tax computation. The starting business result, any wages already subject to Social Security tax and the applicable-year limits can affect the calculation.
Reviewed October 31, 2026. This is an independent guide. The version and availability information below identifies the IRS documents used for this page.
What Schedule SE 2026 does and who prepares it
An individual with covered net earnings from self-employment uses the schedule to compute self-employment tax.
For the connected reporting route, see Form 1040. Keep the role of that document separate from the task explained on this page.
| Official form | Form 1040 (Schedule SE) |
|---|---|
| IRS title | Self-Employment Tax (Schedule SE) |
| Guide period | 2026 |
| Target version | 2026 |
| Availability | Draft — not for filing |
| Last checked | October 31, 2026 |
Get the Schedule SE 2026 PDF and check its status
Use the IRS source to confirm the document before completing a real filing. The download link is a reference to the official file; it is not a statement that every copy inside the PDF may be printed and submitted. Follow any instructions about electronic filing, scannable copies, recipient copies or attachments.
Which version of Schedule SE 2026 should you use?
The 2026 in the title identifies the tax year or calendar-year information addressed by this guide. For a 2026 income reporting document, the preparation or filing activity may occur in 2027. Do not change the income year simply because the calendar has changed. The exact filing or furnishing date comes from the instructions for this form and the filer circumstances. The linked target PDF is a draft. It may be used to understand the proposed layout, but it is not a form to file. Amounts or instructions still subject to completion must be checked again when the final version is released.
Records to gather for Schedule SE 2026
- Business profit or loss schedules.
- Wage statements.
- Partnership self-employment information.
- Applicable optional-method support.
- Prior return for comparison.
Keep a working reconciliation with these records. It should show the source of each reported item, any correction made before filing and the reason a different amount appears on a connected form. This is especially useful when a statement is corrected or a prior-year balance continues into the current calculation.
How to work through Schedule SE 2026
- Confirm applicability. Start with the purpose, filer category and version of the form. Complete any eligibility or applicability question before spending time on the numerical calculation.
- Prepare the source workpapers. Gather the records listed below and reconcile their totals. Keep prior-year balances, current-year transactions and estimated payments separate where they serve different purposes.
- Complete dependent calculations first. When a line refers to another form, schedule or worksheet, finish that supporting calculation first. Preserve any classification, limitation and carryforward information.
- Follow the line sequence. Use the actual line labels and arithmetic in the applicable form. A line number from an older version may refer to something different after a revision.
- Reconcile the filing package. Check names, identifying numbers, tax periods, totals and required attachments. Then use the filing method, signature process and deadline that apply to this filer and form.
Form-specific IRS instructions and reporting details
The following points retain the operative wording of the IRS documents linked above. Read each point with its stated conditions and the applicable form version. References to another form or section describe a connected requirement; they do not mean that every reader must file every referenced document.
Reminder Form 1040-SS. Using Schedule SE (Form 1040) to report self-employment tax for residents of U.S. ter ritories. Schedule SE (Form 1040) must be filed with Form 1040-SS to report self-employment taxes by residents of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), and Puerto Rico. For additional information, see the Instructions for Form 1040-SS.
General Instructions Use Schedule SE (Form 1040) to figure the tax due on net earnings from self-employment. The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses the information from Schedule SE to figure your benefits under the social security program. This tax applies no matter how old you are and even if you are already getting social security or Medicare benefits. Additional information. See Pub. 225 or Pub. 334.
Additional reporting conditions
In most cases, you must pay SE tax on salaries and other income for services you performed as a minister, member of a religious order who hasn’t taken a vow of poverty, or Christian Science practitioner. But if you filed Form 4361 and received IRS approval, you will be exempt from paying SE tax on those net earnings. If you had no other income subject to SE tax, check box number 1 for Form 4361 on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4. See the instructions for Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4, for more information.
However, if you had other earnings of $400 or more subject to SE tax, see line A at the top of Schedule SE. If you have ever filed Form 2031 to elect social security coverage on your earnings as a minister, you can’t revoke that election.
You must pay SE tax on income you earned as a U.S. citizen employed by a foreign government (or, in certain cases, by a wholly owned instrumentality of a foreign government or an international organization under the International Organizations Immunities Act) for services performed in the United States, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the U.S. Virgin Islands. Report income from this employment on Schedule SE, line 2.
If you performed services elsewhere as an employee of a foreign government or an international organization, those earnings are exempt from SE tax.
Calculations and supporting information
If you are a self-employed nonresident alien living in the United States, you must pay SE tax if an international social security agreement in effect determines that you are covered under the U.S. social security system. See Exception under U.S. Citizens or Resident Aliens Living Outside the United States, earlier, for information about international social security agreements. If your self-employment income is subject to SE tax, complete Schedule SE and file it with your Form 1040-NR.
While you are a debtor in a chapter 11 bankruptcy case, your net profit or loss from self-employment (for example, from Schedule C (Form 1040) or Schedule F (Form 1040)) won’t be included in your Form 1040 or 1040-SR income. Instead, it will be included on the income tax return (Form 1041) of the bankruptcy estate. However, you (not the bankruptcy estate) are responsible for paying SE tax on your net earnings from self-employment.
Enter on the dotted line to the left of Schedule SE, line 3, “Chap. 11 bankruptcy income” and the amount of your net profit or (loss). Combine that amount with the total of lines 1a, 1b, and 2 (if any) and enter the result on line 3. For other reporting requirements, see Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Cases in the Instructions for Form 1040.
Exceptions and related reporting
If you had two or more businesses subject to SE tax, your net earnings from self-employment are the combined net earnings from all of your businesses. If you had a loss in one business, it reduces the income from another. Figure the combined SE tax on one Schedule SE.
Show the name of the spouse with self-employment income on Schedule SE. If both spouses have self-employment income, each must file a separate Schedule SE. Include the total profits or losses from all businesses on Form 1040 or 1040-SR. Enter the combined SE tax on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4.
Further form details
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay. If you have questions about international social security agreements, or to see if any additional agreements have been entered into, you can go to the SSA’s International Programs website at SSA.gov/International. The website also provides contact information for questions about benefits and the agreements.
If your self-employment income is exempt from SE tax, you should get a statement from the appropriate agency of the foreign country verifying that your self-employment income is subject to social security coverage in that country. If the foreign country won’t issue the statement, go to the SSA Office of Earnings and International Operations at SSA International Programs Online Certificate of Coverage Service. Don’t complete Schedule SE. Instead, attach a copy of the statement to Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, and on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4, check box number 3 and enter “EAS.”
Further form details
If both lines 4a and 4c are less than $400 and you have an amount on line 1b, combine lines 1a and 2. • If the total of lines 1a and 2 is $434 or more, file Schedule SE (completed through line 4c) with your tax return.
Enter -0- on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 4.* • If the total of lines 1a and 2 is less than $434, don’t file Schedule SE unless you choose to use an optional method to figure your SE tax. * If you also have church employee income (described earlier under Employees of Churches and Church Organizations), also complete lines 5a and 5b. Complete the rest of Schedule SE, as appropriate.
If you were a statutory employee, don’t include the net profit or (loss) from Schedule C (Form 1040), line 31, on Schedule SE, line 2. But be sure to include on line 8a statutory employee social security wages and tips from Form W-2.
Reading the lines and boxes
These selected labels come from the linked target PDF. They are a reading aid, not a replacement for the full line instructions or a completed calculation. Match the label and document version before transferring any amount.
| Line or box | Label in the source form | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| A | If you are a minister, member of a religious order, or Christian Science practitioner and you filed Form 4361, but you had | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 1a | Net farm profit or (loss) from Schedule F, line 34; and farm partnerships, Schedule K-1 (Form 1065), | Identify the income or transaction category before entering a total. Preserve the distinction between gross amounts, adjustments and the resulting taxable or reportable figure. |
| 1b | If you received social security retirement or disability benefits, enter the amount of Conservation Reserve | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 2 | Net profit or (loss) from Schedule C, line 31; and Schedule K-1 (Form 1065), box 14, code A (other than | Identify the income or transaction category before entering a total. Preserve the distinction between gross amounts, adjustments and the resulting taxable or reportable figure. |
| 3 | Combine lines 1a, 1b, and 2 | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
Further selected fields
| Line or box | Label in the source form | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 4a | If line 3 is more than zero, multiply line 3 by 92.35% (0.9235). Otherwise, enter amount from line 3 . | Follow the stated arithmetic and line references in sequence. Complete the referenced inputs first and retain the worksheet supporting the result. |
| 4b | If you elect one or both of the optional methods, enter the total of lines 15 and 17 here | Follow the stated arithmetic and line references in sequence. Complete the referenced inputs first and retain the worksheet supporting the result. |
| 4c | Combine lines 4a and 4b. If less than $400, stop; you don’t owe self-employment tax. Exception: If | Check the applicable line instructions and keep the source workpaper with the return records. Transfer only the information that matches the field and reporting period. |
| 5a | Enter your church employee income from Form W-2. See instructions for | Identify the income or transaction category before entering a total. Preserve the distinction between gross amounts, adjustments and the resulting taxable or reportable figure. |
| 5b | Multiply line 5a by 92.35% (0.9235). If less than $100, enter -0- | Follow the stated arithmetic and line references in sequence. Complete the referenced inputs first and retain the worksheet supporting the result. |
A practical example
A taxpayer has both wages and a business profit. The taxpayer first determines the business result, then uses the wage and business information together in the self-employment tax calculation. The regular income tax calculation is still completed separately.
This example illustrates the order of the review. It does not assume an unverified deduction, exemption, treaty rate or final tax amount. The applicable form instructions and the actual records determine the result.
Common mistakes to avoid with Schedule SE 2026
- Do not use gross business receipts as the automatic self-employment tax base.
- Wages can affect the Social Security part of the calculation.
- Any related income tax adjustment follows the separate return line identified in the instructions.
Questions about Schedule SE 2026
Does receiving or downloading this form mean I must file it?
An individual with covered net earnings from self-employment uses the schedule to compute self-employment tax. The form purpose and the applicable filing or furnishing conditions determine the action. Downloading a blank PDF does not itself create a filing obligation or establish eligibility for a tax benefit.
Can I file the draft PDF?
No. The linked target is marked as a draft. Use it to understand the proposed layout and prepare records, but wait for the applicable final filing version. Check the IRS source again before using any year-specific amount, worksheet or filing instruction.
What should I do if the underlying information is wrong?
Do not use gross business receipts as the automatic self-employment tax base. Keep the original record and the correction trail. The issuer correction process, an amended return and an updated certificate can be different procedures. Choose the process that matches the document and the actual error.
Which records should I keep with the completed form?
Retain the source documents, applicable worksheets, submitted version and filing or furnishing confirmations. For this form, the working file should include business profit or loss schedules, wage statements, partnership self-employment information. Keep continuing balances and prior-year support for as long as they remain relevant under the applicable recordkeeping rules.
Related forms and next steps
Use these guides when the connected issue applies to your records. Each page has its own purpose, reporting year and availability status.
- 1040 Form 2026: Draft PDF & Instructions for Filing in 2027
- Schedule C 2026 (Form 1040): PDF & Profit or Loss From Business (Sole Proprietorship) Guide
- Schedule F 2026 (Form 1040): Draft PDF & Profit or Loss From Farming Guide
- W2 Form 2026: PDF, Instructions & 2027 Filing Guide
- Schedule 1 2026 (Form 1040): Draft PDF & Additional Income and Adjustments to Income Guide