The OBBBA created a temporary extra deduction for older taxpayers, marketed politically as “no tax on Social Security” — which it is not. For tax years 2025 through 2028, an individual who is 65 or older by year-end may deduct an additional $6,000 ($12,000 for a married couple where both spouses qualify). It stacks on top of the standard deduction, is also available to itemizers, and requires a Social Security number on the return.
The catch is the phase-out, and for the readers of this book the catch usually wins. The deduction is reduced by 6% of MAGI above $75,000 (single) or $150,000 (MFJ). A single filer is fully phased out at $175,000 of MAGI; a married couple claiming the full $12,000 is fully phased out at $350,000. Most high-income households will see none of it.
The threshold is still worth knowing, because it is one more income-tested cliff to choreograph. In a deliberately low-income year — the early-retirement window before Social Security and RMDs switch on — a household past 65 can capture the deduction, but only by holding MAGI down, which competes directly with filling the bracket through Roth conversions. That trade-off belongs to the decumulation problem; see section “Cliff Choreography”.