Explanation of IRS Form W-4 Withholding Allowance Certificate

The federal IRS Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, must be completed so that you know how much federal income tax to withhold from your new employee's wages. The importance of having each employee file a Form W-4 cannot be overstated, so make its completion a priority.

If for some reason an employee does not file one, you must withhold tax as if the employee had claimed no exemptions. If a married employee does not claim his married status on Form W-4, the employer must withhold on the basis of the "single employee" withholding tables. Since the withholding rates for single employees are higher than those for married workers and since the amount of tax withheld from a given wage payment decreases as the number of exemptions claimed increases, it is important that you ask all employees to file a certificate.

Reprinted with permission. © CCH

IRS Form W-4 Withholding Allowance Certificate. The federal IRS Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate must be completed so that you know how much federal income tax to withhold from your new employee's wages.

Please Login

You are currently not logged in. Please login for full content.


Email Address *
Password *

Or click here to sign up today!

As a registered user, you get member's only access to these valuable resources and more:

742 forms and checklists for everything from the objectives of a benefits program to facilitating an employee’s return to work after an injury
1,820 state law documents to keep you updated on laws that govern your business
1,400 Q&A's for all your HR queries
Up-to-the-minute HR news, trends and information
Timely case studies and whitepapers
Monthly Newsletter

Registration is quick and easy, so take advantage of all HRTools has to offer and sign up today!