The IRS Is Changing Paycheck Withholdings And It Could Be Confusing

Tax Consultants Prepare For New Tax Guidelines
Getty Images | Joe Raedle

If you’ve filed your taxes for 2019 and hoped you wouldn’t have to deal with any more tax paperwork for at least another year, be warned: The IRS will reportedly roll out a new W-4 form soon. Unfortunately, it might be a bit confusing.

The goal of the new and improved W-4 form will reportedly calculate payroll withholdings more accurately throughout the year, so you do not owe money or have any money owed to you come tax season. To accomplish that, however, the new form will likely need a lot more information from you, like your number of dependents, home mortgage interest, and other sources of income like business profits, dividends, and interest. This will make calculating payroll withholdings more like filling out a 1040 form than the current W-4. You may even need to consult your previous year’s income tax forms.

In order to get feedback from tax professionals, the IRS released an early version of the new form last summer. The agency received a good deal of critical feedback from accounting firms, who cited the complicated nature of the new paperwork as a chief concern.

Because the form referenced 12 other IRS forms, Ernst & Young reportedly expressed worry that employees would find it hard to fill out the form and may require training sessions. Others who viewed the new W-4 disliked the amount of personal information an employee would have to disclose to a new employer, including details about a spouse’s income and whether they have multiple jobs.

After taking the initial feedback into consideration, the IRS will reportedly release an updated draft by May 31st. It will allow the public to review and provide feedback on the new form. The revised draft coming in May will reportedly be “simpler.” Here’s hoping that’s true!

“We encourage taxpayers to take advantage of that opportunity and send us comments on the redesign,” IRS spokesperson Anny Pachner told USA Today.

The final version will reportedly be ready for the 2020 tax season.

About the Author

Margeaux Baulch Klein

Margeaux Baulch Klein is a freelance writer and digital strategist based in Los Angeles. She has written for publications like the Huffington Post, New York Daily News, Bustle, and HelloGiggles, among others. More.

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