The Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) is a United States legislation that mandates businesses and employees to contribute a part of their income to support Social Security and Medicare programs. Employers must withhold the employee's part of FICA taxes from their paychecks and submit them to the government on their behalf.
Example
For the 2021 tax year, the FICA tax rate is 7.65% for both employees and employers, with 6.2% going to Social Security and 1.45% to Medicare.