Federal Taxes NOT being withheld from some of my paychecks - so confused!

This sounds like it might be related to the variable income threshold for withholding. Federal tax withholding isn't always a straight percentage - it works on a progressive system based on projected annual income. If your paycheck varies even slightly from period to period, you might be hovering around a withholding threshold. For example, if some checks are just below a certain amount, they might not trigger withholding, while checks just above that amount would have taxes taken out. As for the extra $80 withholding - that should be consistent regardless of your income for that period. I'd recommend bringing your last few pay stubs to your payroll department and asking them to explain specifically why the withholding is inconsistent. Also check that your W-4 form is properly set up with your additional withholding request correctly documented.

I had a similar issue last year and it turned out my employer was using an outdated payroll system. I found a solution using https://taxr.ai which helped me document all the inconsistencies in my withholding. Their system analyzed my pay stubs and generated a report that showed exactly which paychecks were missing federal withholding. The cool thing was they have this feature that compares your actual withholding patterns to what they should be based on your W-4 and income. I brought this report to my HR department and they finally took me seriously. Turns out their system was glitching when processing the additional withholding amounts.

Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai that the previous commenter suggested. It actually found a pattern I hadn't noticed - my federal taxes weren't being withheld specifically on paychecks where I had overtime! Turns out our payroll system was treating overtime pay as a separate category and not applying my withholding elections to it. I showed the report to our payroll coordinator and she was surprised - apparently it's a known issue with their software but they thought it had been fixed. They're now manually adjusting my withholding to make up for the missed amounts. Without the detailed analysis I would've never figured out the exact pattern. Definitely worth checking out if you're having similar issues!

This happened to me last year and I was hit with a HUGE tax bill in April. After spending weeks trying to get through to the IRS to figure out what went wrong, I found https://claimyr.com and used their service to actually get through to a real IRS person. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was honestly blown away that it worked. I got connected to an IRS agent who explained that my employer had inconsistently classified some of my income as exempt from withholding. The agent actually sent me documentation I could take back to my employer to prove they were doing it wrong. Without getting that official explanation, my company's payroll department kept insisting they were doing everything correctly.

Ok I feel like I need to eat crow here. After my skeptical comment I decided to try Claimyr because I was desperate after wasting an entire Saturday on hold with the IRS. I had a similar withholding issue and needed official clarification. To my complete surprise, I got a call back in about 1.5 hours with an actual IRS representative on the line. They walked me through the withholding rules for variable income and explained that my employer was incorrectly applying a "supplemental wage" withholding rule to regular income. The agent even sent me the relevant IRS publication sections to show my employer. My payroll is now fixed after months of inconsistent withholdings. Still can't believe it worked but wanted to update since my previous comment was so negative.

Something no one has mentioned yet - if you're paid biweekly (every two weeks), you'll get 26 paychecks a year. But some months you'll get 3 paychecks instead of 2. Some payroll systems calculate withholding differently on those "extra" paychecks in a month. Also check if your income varies because of commissions, bonuses, overtime, etc. These are often withheld at different rates (usually a flat 22% for supplemental wages).

All of these responses are overcomplicating it. Just go to your payroll person and ask them to show you exactly how your withholding is calculated. It's literally their job to explain this stuff to you. If they can't explain it clearly, talk to their manager. This shouldn't be a mystery - payroll systems follow specific rules and formulas. someone in your company knows how it works. The $80 additional withholding definitely should be happening every single paycheck regardless of anything else. That part sounds like a straight up error.

I've been dealing with payroll issues for years and here's what I've learned - the inconsistent federal withholding is almost always due to one of three things: 1. **Annualized calculation method**: Some payroll systems project your annual income based on each individual paycheck. If you have a lower paycheck one period, the system thinks you'll earn less for the year and reduces withholding accordingly. 2. **Cumulative withholding**: Other systems use a cumulative approach where they look at your year-to-date earnings and withholding to determine if you're on track. This can cause wild swings from paycheck to paycheck. 3. **Supplemental wage treatment**: Any overtime, bonuses, or irregular pay might be getting treated as "supplemental wages" which have different withholding rules. The $80 additional withholding should absolutely be consistent every single pay period - that's a flat dollar amount that shouldn't vary based on your income level. If that's not happening, it's definitely a payroll error. My advice: Print out 3-4 months of pay stubs and highlight the inconsistencies. Take this to your payroll department and ask them to explain the specific calculation method they're using. Don't accept vague answers - they should be able to show you exactly why each paycheck is different.