Jobs Simply

W4 - How to file if married, both work, multiple jobs? Help!?

Here's the situation. My husband and I always owe taxes and I need some help to figure out the right way to file. I have one job, he has two jobs. My job has the highest pay. We always file jointly. On our W4's, we use "married but withhold at single rate" and claim 1 allowance. I just read something that said that you are supposed to only use the allowance on one person's W4.. is that correct? Currently, we use the "single rate" and 1 allowance on all of our W4's (mine and both of his). Can someone help me figure out the right way to file? From what I have read, this is what I am thinking I should do: Me - "single rate" and 1 allowance Him - "single rate" and zero allowances for both jobs Can someone tell me if I have that right? Thank you for your help!

Public Comments

1. You are making it too difficult. Throw out the W-4 worksheets. If you always owe taxes and don't want to, have more withheld by claiming 0 on all of your jobs. If necessary, claim 0 plus put a dollar amount on line 6 to have an additional flat amount taken out of each check.
2. If you have more than one job, if your spouse works, or if you itemize your deductions, use the worksheet on Form W-4 page 2. Use this worksheet to calculate the number of allowances to claim instead of relying on your personal exemptions. You can also use the IRS Withholding Calculator to calculate your withholding allowances more exactly. If you have more than one job, make sure you claim zero allowances at your second job. Claiming "exempt" is NOT the same as claiming zero. By claiming zero, the highest amount of tax will withheld. Print, sign, and date the form. Give the W-4 to your employer. They will fill out lines 8, 9, and 10. Download Form W-4 (PDF) from the IRS. You will need a PDF reader. Adobe Reader 9 is FREE. You can also go to irs.gov and search for the IRS Withholding Calculator.
3. In your position you should both use the "Married, but withhold at higher single rate" in order to have as much taken out as possible. What you might do is run up a "show & tell" tax return to see what your total tax bill will be, then total up the amount of anticipated withholding for the year. If you are short you can ask one employer or other to hold out extra to compensate. If you want to run the numbers by me I can produce the show & tell return so you will know what total tax bite you are looking at; been doing it for 37 years. Good luck.
4. just go single and zero for all jobs to maximize withholding - if it still isn't enough to at least pay all the taxes you owe and get you a refund, then something is wrong-talk to a tax accountant