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My Coast Guard
Commentary | Sept. 11, 2020

Reminder: Payroll tax deferral starts soon

By MyCG Staff

The Government will defer Social Security taxes for many federal civilians and uniformed members through the end of this year. To calculate the impact on your personal pay, please see the “how-to” section below.

You must pay these taxes back in 2021. 

Also, there is no opting out. All federal agencies, including military branches, must comply with the presidential memorandum intended to support the American workforce during the pandemic.

The deferred payments will be deducted from federal paychecks starting in January 2021, in addition to your regular withholding.

For the military members, paychecks for September 15 and October 1 will not change. The mid-October paycheck will begin the tax deferment and include deferrals for the month of September. To figure out your payroll change, go to Direct Access for your earning and leave statement; find your Basic Pay amount; and calculate 6.2 percent.

We will update civilians soon as to when to expect to see a change in their paychecks. To estimate the change in your pay, log in to MyEPP to pull up your earnings and leave statement for a pay period that doesn’t include any overtime or special pay; and look up the amount withheld for Social Security (OASDI) per pay period.

The Coast Guard is waiting for our military and civilian payroll providers to share additional details. We will share additional information as soon as it is available.

The Coast Guard offers many financial resources to help you navigate this change. Some of the options you’ll find in the MyCG Financial Wellness sections include:

Remember, the Coast Guard has financial resources, including financial coaches to help you with this change. The Coast Guard is also expanding its personal financial management program, including adding staff in every district to help with your personal financial plan. The program also offers a financial management resource fact sheet and information on the Blended Retirement System (BRS), including a BRS comparison calculator. 

CG SUPRT offers one-on-one financial coaching among other support. It is available to active duty members, reservists, full-time civil service employees, and their dependents. Call 1-1-855-CGSUPRT (247-8778) or visit their site.

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