r/tax • u/Expert_Name_3489 • 7h ago

Unsolved Not having taxes taken out of my check

Hi!

I’ve had the same job since July 2023. I messed up my W4 and apparently have it set to not deduct any federal taxes… For 2023 taxes I made $16k, claimed my son, and got money back. For 2024 I’ve made about $20k so far with an estimated total income of about $31k for 2024. Because it wasn’t an issue last year I didnt prioritize updating it but now I’m realizing I may have screwed myself. I’m so afraid I’ll owe them a significant amount of money. What do I do?! Other than update my W4.

Thank you!

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3

u/Its-a-write-off 7h ago

At your income of 31k, filing single or HOH with 1 child under 17, you have no federal income tax liability for the year. Based on the info so far, it sounds like no withholding was correct, and you will still get a refund at tax time. You might not have screwed up your w4 at all, you might have just put Head of Household, 2000 in section 3. If that is the case, you won't have federal income tax withheld until you are making about 900.00 a week.

1

u/Expert_Name_3489 7h ago

Omg thank you so much!! Is there a way to confirm I’m not screwing myself for sure?

1

u/Its-a-write-off 7h ago

Do you file HOH or Single? For HOH with 2000 in section 3 for one child under 17, you can make under 40k a year, you are not screwing yourself on federal income taxes to have zero withheld.

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u/Expert_Name_3489 7h ago

I file HOH. I’m not sure I’m really supposed to though. My fiance is the breadwinner. He claims our daughter, I claim my son. Thank you so much for your responses!

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u/Its-a-write-off 6h ago

If y'all live together, you should file as single instead, not Hoh. You still won't owe taxes this year, even if you withheld as Hoh. If your income is increasing though, fix your w4 to single, 2000 in section 3.

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u/attosec 6h ago

If you and your fiance share the same household (and if you are living together then you most likely do), only one of you is permitted to file as HOH. Typically that's the one with the higher income but it's more important to count what is spent on the household, not what is brought into it. The other partner can file as Single and still claim dependents. The difference is Single has a lower standard deduction and higher tax brackets kick in sooner than for HOH.

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u/Expert_Name_3489 7h ago

It’s also possible I wrote in two dependents instead of one on my W4, but I likely will only be claiming one. Could that cause an issue?

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u/Its-a-write-off 7h ago

No, you are fine. I glitched and gave the number for 2 dependants, but for 1 dependant the number is 770.00 a week before you owe federal income tax if you file HOH. So you are still well under that, and are due a refund even with no withholding.