Does Nebraska tax Social Security benefits?

No. Nebraska completed its phase-out early — benefits are 100% exempt from state income tax beginning tax year 2024.

Was 2024 or 2025 the first fully exempt year in Nebraska?

Tax year 2024. The original phase-out would have reached 100% in 2025, but the legislature accelerated it by a year, so 2024 returns already reflected the full exemption.

Are my benefits still federally taxable in Nebraska?

Yes. Nebraska’s exemption is state-only. Up to 85% of benefits can still be federally taxable once provisional income exceeds $34,000 (single) or $44,000 (married filing jointly), with the first tier starting at $25,000 and $32,000.

Nebraska (NE) • 2026 Tax Year

Does Nebraska Tax Social Security?

Nebraska fully exempted Social Security beginning tax year 2024, accelerating a phase-out originally scheduled to finish in 2025.

State Tax Rate

No SS tax (ended 2024)

Status

100% exempt since tax year 2024

What Nebraska's exemption does and doesn't cover

Scope of the exemption

Since tax year 2024, 100% of Social Security benefits are exempt from Nebraska income tax — no age test, no income limit.
The exemption applies to the full benefit, not just the federally taxable portion, so no Nebraska threshold can claw any of it back.
The exemption is state-only. Up to 85% of benefits remain federally taxable once provisional income passes $25,000 (single) or $32,000 (married filing jointly).

Key facts about Nebraska and Social Security

Nebraska’s legislature accelerated its phase-out — 100% of Social Security benefits are exempt beginning tax year 2024.

The original schedule would have reached full exemption in 2025; lawmakers moved it up a year.

The acceleration means tax year 2024 returns already reflected the full exemption, a year earlier than most published schedules predicted.

Federal rules are unchanged: the 85% maximum inclusion and the $25,000/$32,000 and $34,000/$44,000 provisional-income tiers still apply to Nebraska residents.

Expert Strategy

Tax-smart strategy for Nebraska residents

Nebraska finished its phase-out a year ahead of schedule, which means the state variable is now fixed at zero for every resident regardless of income. That removes a common source of confusion — guides written against the original schedule still describe a partial exemption for 2024 that no longer reflects the law. With the state question settled, the entire claiming decision rests on federal provisional income and longevity. The lever that remains is sequencing: because the federal calculation phases in between $25,000 and $34,000 (single) or $32,000 and $44,000 (married filing jointly), the order in which you draw from taxable, tax-deferred, and Roth accounts still changes how much of your benefit is taxed — even though Nebraska takes none of it.

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