I can fill out all the immigration forms easily, but a W-4 has me stumped

[dentsflogged 352]

How's this possible?

I got my combo card tuesday, and got a job offer yesterday - perfect timing! 

So I'm sitting here, filling out all the paperwork and I am stuck on the W-4 and what to put or not put. Husband claims to just leave everything blank except my name, SSN etc - and that at worst I'll just overpay in tax and get it refunded next year - but I'm so frustrated and stumped that I could fill out all the immigration paperwork without a blink but tax stuff is just so different that trying to wade through all the extra instructions just isn't working. 

 

Anyone have any advice? Do I just go with what hubby says and not bother with exemptions? Am I even eligible to claim exemptions anyhow - not a student, don't have kids, etc etc, so I don't think any would really apply.

[Ben&Zian 4,398]

2 minutes ago, dentsflogged said:

How's this possible?

I got my combo card tuesday, and got a job offer yesterday - perfect timing! 

So I'm sitting here, filling out all the paperwork and I am stuck on the W-4 and what to put or not put. Husband claims to just leave everything blank except my name, SSN etc - and that at worst I'll just overpay in tax and get it refunded next year - but I'm so frustrated and stumped that I could fill out all the immigration paperwork without a blink but tax stuff is just so different that trying to wade through all the extra instructions just isn't working. 

 

Anyone have any advice? Do I just go with what hubby says and not bother with exemptions? Am I even eligible to claim exemptions anyhow - not a student, don't have kids, etc etc, so I don't think any would really apply.

 

Your exemption so to say would be married, which means each pay check you pay a little less tax. My husband and I both just claim single at our respective works and then claim it at the end of the year on our tax returns when we file jointly. Really doesn't matter, it's up to you if you want to claim married or just leave it as single. Either option is fine.

 

For instance a woman here at my work claims single, then at the end of the year she files jointly with her husband and they claim their 3 kids for mass return.

[Crazy Cat 42,218]

Just now, dentsflogged said:

How's this possible?

I got my combo card tuesday, and got a job offer yesterday - perfect timing! 

So I'm sitting here, filling out all the paperwork and I am stuck on the W-4 and what to put or not put. Husband claims to just leave everything blank except my name, SSN etc - and that at worst I'll just overpay in tax and get it refunded next year - but I'm so frustrated and stumped that I could fill out all the immigration paperwork without a blink but tax stuff is just so different that trying to wade through all the extra instructions just isn't working. 

 

Anyone have any advice? Do I just go with what hubby says and not bother with exemptions? Am I even eligible to claim exemptions anyhow - not a student, don't have kids, etc etc, so I don't think any would really apply.

The W-4 is used by your employer only.........just to determine how much in taxes to withhold......It is not an official tax filing status...it is a withholding status.......If you leave it blank, the employer will probably withhold maximum taxes (as if you were single with no exemptions).   In theory, you would receive a higher income tax refund after filing taxes next year.......so it's really up to you.  Do you want to keep more of your money during the year?

[dentsflogged 352]

1 minute ago, missileman said:

The W-4 is used by your employer only.........just to determine how much in taxes to withhold......It is not an official tax filing status...it is a withholding status.......If you leave it blank, the employer will probably withhold maximum taxes (as if you were single with no exemptions).   In theory, you would receive a higher income tax refund after filing taxes next year.......so it's really up to you.  Do you want to keep more of your money during the year?

Ok, so that makes it seem less scary.... I kinda like the idea of just getting a higher income tax refund - I used to do that in Australia by claiming I had a student debt (so they take more in tax to "pay it back") but since I didn't, I'd get a mega refund every year that would just go straight into my retirement fund (for a while the government would do a % match of any lump sums you pay into your own retirement as a way to encourage them, they don't do that anymore) or savings. 

 

 

[usmsbow 802]

I recommend selecting single and NOT married for the W-4. My wife and I learned the hard way that if both are working and put married on their W-4, you're probably underpaying your income tax, and you'll get a big fat tax bill when you do your tax returns. I would go with your husband's advice. If it turns out you get a big tax refund next Spring, you can adjust your W-4 then if you want to stop giving the government an interest free loan :). 

 

 

[Cryssiekins 976]

The tax forms in the US make my brain itchy.  I have no understanding of them at all, and it makes me feel stupid.  

 

I just left mine blank.  My employer deducts tax and using the calculator on the IRS website, I think my husband and I should balance out, or be owed a small refund next year.  

 

I never understood the wanting a huge tax refund - essentially you ripped yourself off.  I would rather owe at the end of the year than to have given an interest-free loan.  I just put a little extra in an account each pay cycle, and even if that only yields “a few bucks” in interest from the bank - it’s still more than what any government would give me on it.  And if I wind up owing, I can just take it from the savings account rather than having to fit it into a regular budget. 

[Mike E 11,742]

The W4 is the most useless brain dead form the IRS invented. 

 

Follow your husband’s advice.