<prompt> Human: Was looking at my wifes W2 just now and realized she didnt pay any social security tax in 2016. I did some research and realized that teachers in California dont pay into social security and dont get benefits down the road. My question is, when we file a joint return, will this cause a red flag that we havent paid the usual amount into social security taxes for our entire joint income?  <response>: No. Youre correct that teachers in CA pay into a different retirement fund, and social security isnt collected. If you use tax software when you enter the W2 it might give you a warning saying soc sec wasnt entered, but you should just be able to confirm that thats actually correct. 