Pay stub abbreviations (2026)

What is FICA EE? FICA EE is the employee share of Social Security and Medicare tax taken from your pay: 6.2% Social Security (up to $184,500 in 2026) plus 1.45% Medicare, or 7.65% for most workers. Your employer pays a matching share, labelled FICA ER, that does not reduce your paycheck.

What does FICA EE mean on my paycheck?

FICA EE is the Social Security and Medicare tax taken out of your pay. "FICA" is the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, and "EE" means employee. It is 7.65% of your wages for most workers in 2026: 6.2% for Social Security (on wages up to $184,500) plus 1.45% for Medicare (on all wages).

Your employer pays a matching amount on top of your wages, usually labelled FICA ER (employer). That share never reduces your paycheck. Earners above $200,000 pay an extra 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax, which is employee-only. For the full picture see how paycheck taxes work.

A real pay stub, line by line

Here is a $60,000 salary, single filer, paid biweekly in a state with no income tax (Texas), using this site's 2026 calculator. Your own stub will differ with your W-4 and benefits.

Stub line	Typical label	Per paycheck
Gross pay	GROSS · REG EARNINGS	$2,308
Federal income tax	FIT · FED W/H	-$193
Social Security (6.2%)	OASDI · SOC SEC	-$143
Medicare (1.45%)	MED · MEDICARE	-$33
FICA EE total	FICA EE	-$177
Net pay	NET · TAKE HOME	$1,938

Try your own numbers in the paycheck calculator, or see your state on the state pages.

Tax abbreviations on a pay stub

Abbreviation	Meaning
FICA EE	Employee Social Security + Medicare tax
FICA ER	Employer match of FICA (not deducted from you)
OASDI / SOC SEC	Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance, i.e. Social Security (6.2%); see what is OASDI
MED / MED EE	Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% above $200,000); see what is MED EE
FIT / FITW / FED W/H	Federal income tax withholding, based on your Form W-4 (what is FITW)
SIT / ST W/H	State income tax withholding
LIT / LOCAL	City, county or school-district income tax
SDI / TDI / PFML / FLI	State disability or paid family leave premiums, see state payroll programs
SUI / SUTA / FUTA	Unemployment taxes, paid by the employer in nearly every state

Deduction and benefit codes

401K / 403B / 457: retirement contributions, pre-tax for income tax but still subject to FICA.
ROTH 401K: after-tax retirement contribution, no reduction in taxes today.
MED / DEN / VIS: health, dental and vision premiums. Under a Section 125 plan they are pre-tax and also lower FICA wages. Here "MED" means medical insurance, not Medicare, so check which section of the stub it appears in.
HSA / FSA: health savings and flexible spending contributions. See pre-tax deductions.
GTL / IMPUTED: taxable value of employer-paid group term life insurance over $50,000. It adds to taxable wages without adding cash.
GARN / CS: garnishments, such as child support or a court order.

Gross, net and YTD

Gross is pay before any deduction and net is what lands in your bank account. YTD means year to date, the running total for the calendar year — see the full YTD guide. YTD Social Security stops growing once your wages reach the $184,500 wage base, which is why some high earners see a bigger paycheck late in the year. Unfamiliar term? Check the paycheck glossary.

How to check your pay stub

Multiply gross pay for the period by 7.65%. If you have no Section 125 benefits, FICA EE should match (until the Social Security wage base is reached).
Compare federal withholding with a calculator using your W-4 answers.
Confirm state, local and disability lines match where you live and work.
If something looks wrong, ask payroll first. Errors in withholding can be fixed by a new W-4 or, for wrong FICA, by your employer.

This is general information, not tax advice, and stub layouts vary by payroll provider.

Frequently asked questions

What is FICA EE on my paycheck?

FICA EE is the employee share of FICA taxes: Social Security (6.2% of wages up to $184,500 in 2026) plus Medicare (1.45% of all wages). "EE" stands for employee; your employer pays a matching "ER" share separately.

Is FICA the same as Social Security?

FICA is the umbrella name for two taxes, Social Security (OASDI) and Medicare. Some pay stubs show one FICA line; others split it into OASDI and MED.

What does FICA ER mean?

FICA ER is the employer match. It is not deducted from your pay. You may see it on a stub as an informational line.

Why is my FICA amount not exactly 7.65%?

Pre-tax benefits such as health premiums under a Section 125 plan reduce FICA wages, but 401(k) contributions do not. Social Security also stops once your year-to-date wages pass the wage base.

What do FIT and SIT mean on a pay stub?

FIT is federal income tax withholding and SIT is state income tax withholding.