The Daily Bulletin Archive

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released its 2020 Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate (PDF, 174 KB), which is quite different from previous versions. This is because of the federal tax law changes that took place in 2018. Current employees are not required to complete the new form; however, all new employees hired as of January 1, 2020, and current employees who choose to adjust their withholdings during 2020 must use 2020 Form W-4.

Employees may also use the NYS Payroll Online self-service portal to change their tax deductions for 2020.

Even if the IRS does not require you to complete the revised form, and even if your tax situation has not changed, you may perform a “paycheck checkup” to see if you need to adjust your current withholding. To conduct the checkup, you can use the IRS’s Tax Withholding Estimator. To effectively use the estimator, it is helpful to have a copy of your most recent pay stub and tax return. It is likely that the estimator will be updated to account for the 2020 tax tables in early January. Note, if you do not submit a new form, withholding will continue based on your previously submitted form.

Before completing the 2020 Form W-4, please read the instructions that are included with the form. You must complete Steps 1 and 5. Steps 2, 3, and 4 are optional, but completing them will help ensure that your federal income tax withholding will more accurately match your tax liability. Step 1 is for your personal information; Step 2 is for households with multiple jobs; Step 3 is used to claim tax credits for dependents; Step 4 is for other adjustments (additional income such as interest and dividends, itemized deductions that exceed the standard deduction, and extra tax you want withheld); and Step 5 is where you sign the form.

The IRS has published a list of frequently asked questions that you may find helpful as you complete the form.

Please contact the Payroll Office at 878-4124 with questions.