Purpose. Complete Form W-4 so that your employer can withhold the correct federal income tax from your pay. Consider completing a new Form W-4 each year and when your personal or financial situation changes.
Exemption from withholding. If you are exempt, complete only lines 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7 and sign the form to validate it. Your exemption for 2008 expires February 16, 2009. See Pub. 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax.
Note. You cannot claim exemption from withholding if (a) your income exceeds $900 and includes more than $300 of unearned income (for example, interest and dividends) and (b) another person can claim you as a dependent on their tax return.
Basic instructions. If you are not exempt, complete the Personal Allowances Worksheet below. The worksheets on page 2 adjust your withholding allowances based on itemized deductions, certain credits, adjustments to income, or two-earner/multiple job situations. Complete all worksheets that apply. However, you may claim fewer (or zero) allowances.
Head of household. Generally, you may claim head of household filing status on your tax return only if you are unmarried and pay more than 50% of the costs of keeping up a home for yourself and your dependent(s) or other qualifying individuals. See Pub. 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information, for information.
Tax credits. You can take projected tax credits into account in figuring your allowable number of withholding allowances. Credits for child or dependent care expenses and the child tax credit may be claimed using the Personal Allowances Worksheet below. See Pub. 919, How Do I Adjust My Tax Withholding, for information on converting your other credits into withholding allowances.
Nonwage income. If you have a large amount of nonwage income, such as interest or dividends, consider making estimated tax payments using Form 1040-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals. Otherwise, you may owe additional tax. If you have pension or annuity income, see Pub. 919 to find out if you should adjust your withholding on Form W-4 or W-4P.
Two earners or multiple jobs. If you have a working spouse or more than one job, figure the total number of allowances you are entitled to claim on all jobs using worksheets from only one Form W-4. Your withholding usually will be most accurate when all allowances are claimed on the Form W-4 for the highest paying job and zero allowances are claimed on the others. See Pub. 919 for details.
Nonresident alien. If you are a nonresident alien, see the Instructions for Form 8233 before completing this Form W-4.
Check your withholding. After your Form W-4 takes effect, use Pub. 919 to see how the dollar amount you are having withheld compares to your projected total tax for 2008. See Pub. 919, especially if your earnings exceed $130,000 (Single) or $180,000 (Married).
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Personal Allowances Worksheet
(Keep for your records.)
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A Enter "1" for yourself if no one else can claim you as a
dependent A _____
{ • You are single and have only one job; }
{ or }
{ }
B Enter "1" if: { • You are married, have only one job, and } B _____
{ your spouse does not work; or }
{ }
{ • Your wages from a second job or your }
{ spouse's wages (or the total of both) }
{ are $1,500 or less. }
C Enter "1" for your spouse. But, you may choose to enter
"-0-" if you are married and have either a working spouse
or more than one job. (Entering "-0-" may help you avoid
having too little tax withheld.) C _____
D Enter number of dependents (other than your spouse or
yourself) you will claim on your tax return D _____
E Enter "1" if you will file as head of household on your tax
return (see conditions under Head of household above) E _____
F Enter "1" if you have at least $1,500 of child or dependent
care expenses for which you plan to claim a credit F _____
(Note. Do not include child support payments. See Pub. 503,
Child and Dependent Care Expenses, for details.)
G Child Tax Credit (including additional child tax credit).
See Pub. 972, Child Tax Credit, for more information.
• If your total income will be less than $58,000 ($86,000
if married), enter "2" for each eligible child.
• If your total income will be between $58,000 and $84,000
($86,000 and $119,000 if married), enter "1" for each
eligible child plus "1" additional if you have 4 or more
eligible children. G _____
H Add lines A through G and enter total here. (Note. This may
be different from the number of exemptions you claim on
your tax return.) H _____
For accuracy, { • If you plan to itemize or claim adjustments to
complete all { income and want to reduce your withholding, see
worksheets { the Deductions and Adjustments Worksheet on page
that apply. { 2.
{
{ • If you have more than one job or are married and
{ you and your spouse both work and the combined
{ earnings from all jobs exceed $40,000 ($25,000 if
{ married) see the Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs
{ Worksheet on page 2 to avoid having too little tax
{ withheld.
{
{ • If neither of the above situations applies, stop
{ here and enter the number from line H on line 5 of
{ Form W-4 below.
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[The following graphic has not been reproduced:
Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate]
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Deductions and Adjustments Worksheet
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Note. Use this worksheet only if you plan to itemize deductions, claim
certain credits, or claim adjustments to income on your 2008 tax
return.
1 Enter an estimate of your 2008 itemized deductions.
These include qualifying home mortgage interest,
charitable contributions, state and local taxes, medical
expenses in excess of 7.5% of your income, and
miscellaneous deductions. (For 2008, you may have to
reduce your itemized deductions if your income is over
$159,950 ($79,975 if married filing separately). See
Worksheet 2 in Pub. 919 for details.) 1 $
{ $10,900 if married filing jointly or }
{ qualifying widow(er) }
2 Enter: { $ 8,000 if head of household } 2 $
{ $ 5,450 if single or married filing }
{ separately }
3 Subtract line 2 from line 1. If zero or less, enter
"-0-" 3 $
4 Enter an estimate of your 2008 adjustments to income,
including alimony, deductible IRA contributions, and
student loan interest 4 $
5 Add lines 3 and 4 and enter the total. (Include any
amount for credits from Worksheet 8 in Pub. 919) 5 $
6 Enter an estimate of your 2008 nonwage income (such as
dividends or interest) 6 $
7 Subtract line 6 from line 5. If zero or less, enter
"-0-" 7 $
8 Divide the amount on line 7 by $3,500 and enter the
result here. Drop any fraction 8 ______
9 Enter the number from the Personal Allowances Worksheet,
line H, page 1 9 ______
10 Add lines 8 and 9 and enter the total here. If you plan
to use the Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs Worksheet, also
enter this total on line 1 below. Otherwise, stop here
and enter this total on Form W-4, line 5, page 1 10 ______
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Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs Worksheet (See Two earners or multiple jobs
on page 1.)
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Note. Use this worksheet only if the instructions under line H on
page 1 direct you here.
1 Enter the number from line H, page 1 (or from line 10
above if you used the Deductions and Adjustments
Worksheet) 1 ______
2 Find the number in Table 1 below that applies to the
LOWEST paying job and enter it here. However, if you are
married filing jointly and wages from the highest paying
job are $50,000 or less, do not enter more than "3." 2 ______
3 If line 1 is more than or equal to line 2, subtract line
2 from line 1. Enter the result here (if zero, enter
"-0-") and on Form W-4, line 5, page 1. Do not use the
rest of this worksheet 3 ______
Note. If line 1 is less than line 2, enter "-0-" on Form W-4, line 5,
page 1. Complete lines 4-9 below to calculate the additional
withholding amount necessary to avoid a year-end tax bill.
4 Enter the number from line 2 of this worksheet 4 ______
5 Enter the number from line 1 of this worksheet 5 ______
6 Subtract line 5 from line 4 6 ______
7 Find the amount in Table 2 below that applies to the
HIGHEST paying job and enter it here 7 $
8 Multiply line 7 by line 6 and enter the result here. This
is the additional annual withholding needed 8 $
9 Divide line 8 by the number of pay periods remaining in
2008. For example, divide by 26 if you are paid every two
weeks and you complete this form in December 2007. Enter
the result here and on Form W-4, line 6, page 1. This is
the additional amount to be withheld from each paycheck 9 $
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Table 1
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Married Filing Jointly All Others
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If wages from LOWEST Enter on If wages from LOWEST Enter on
paying job are— line 2 above paying job are— line 2 above
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$0 - $4,500 0 $0 - $6,500 0
4,501 - 10,000 1 6,501 - 12,000 1
10,001 - 18,000 2 12,001 - 20,000 2
18,001 - 22,000 3 20,001 - 27,000 3
22,001 - 27,000 4 27,001 - 35,000 4
27,001 - 33,000 5 35,001 - 50,000 5
33,001 - 40,000 6 50,001 - 65,000 6
40,001 - 50,000 7 65,001 - 80,000 7
50,001 - 55,000 8 80,001 - 95,000 8
55,001 - 60,000 9 95,001 - 120,000 9
60,001 - 65,000 10 120,001 and over 10
65,001 - 75,000 11
75,001 - 100,000 12
100,001 - 110,000 13
110,001 - 120,000 14
120,001 and over 15
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Table 2
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Married Filing Jointly All Others
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Enter on
If wages from HIGHEST Enter on If wages from HIGHEST line 7
paying job are— line 7 above paying job are— above
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$0 - $65,000 $530 $0 - $35,000 $530
65,001 - 120,000 880 35,001 - 80,000 880
120,001 - 180,000 980 80,001 - 150,000 980
180,001 - 310,000 1,160 150,001 - 340,000 1,160
310,001 and over 1,230 340,001 and over 1,230
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Privacy Act and Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. The Internal Revenue Code requires this information under sections 3402(f)(2)(A) and 6109 and their regulations. Failure to provide a properly completed form will result in your being treated as a single person who claims no withholding allowances; providing fraudulent information may also subject you to penalties. Routine uses of this information include giving it to the Department of Justice for civil and criminal litigation, to cities, states, and the District of Columbia for use in administering their tax laws, and using it in the National Directory of New Hires. We may also disclose this information to other countries under a tax treaty, to federal and state agencies to enforce federal nontax criminal laws, or to federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies to combat terrorism.
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The average time and expenses required to complete and file this form will vary depending on individual circumstances. For estimated averages, see the instructions for your income tax return.
If you have suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. See the instructions for your income tax return.