Additional Medicare Tax is 0.9% on Medicare wages above a filing-status threshold. It is not the regular 1.45% Medicare line. It is not Social Security.
Two W-2s can hide it. $190,000 at job A and $45,000 at job B is $235,000 combined. Each employer is under the $200,000 withholding trigger, so each stub can show $0 extra. The statutory tax is not $0 if you file as single.
- Single / other: threshold $200,000 → excess $35,000 → tax $315
- Married filing jointly: threshold $250,000 → excess $0 → tax $0
- Married filing separately on the $190,000 job: threshold $125,000 → tax $585
Run the Additional Medicare calculator →
This is the opposite leftover of two jobs each running Social Security to the wage base. Here the risk is under-withholding, not a refund of extra 6.2%. Regular FICA is still Topic 751. Hub: United States calculators.
IRS Topic 751 tells each employer to start the extra 0.9% only after it pays you $200,000. It does not add your other W-2. Form 8959 reconciles the year. Estimate, not tax advice.
Direct answer: $235,000 combined → $315 if single
- Combined Medicare wages = $190,000 + $45,000 = $235,000
- Single threshold = $200,000
- Excess = $35,000
- Tax = 0.9% × $35,000 = $315
- Employer extra withheld = $0 + $0
threshold = $250,000 (joint) / $125,000 (MFS) / $200,000 (any other case)
excess = max(0, calendar-year Medicare wages − threshold)
tax = 0.9% × excess
Same $235,000, three statuses
| Status | Threshold | Excess | Tax | Typical stub extra |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single / other | $200,000 | $35,000 | $315 | $0 |
| Married filing jointly | $250,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| MFS on the $190,000 job | $125,000 | $65,000 | $585 | $0 |
The $45,000 job is under every threshold by itself. It still counts toward the combined single and joint tests.
One W-2 at $250,000 single is a different leftover: Additional Medicare after $200,000. Regular Medicare 1.45% never stops. FICA $2,000 → $153.
What this page does not do
- Add NIIT 3.8% on investment income.
- Rebuild employer withholding paycheck by paycheck.
- Combine Social Security wage bases across employers (that is a different two-job story).
Because neither employer paid you $200,000. The withholding rule is per employer. The tax is on combined wages.
Not on $235,000. The joint threshold is $250,000, so the engine returns $0.
No. Both jobs already withhold regular Medicare. $315 is only the additional 0.9% on the $35,000 excess.