My tax bill seems way off - does this sound right for my income level?

6 Thanks for responding! I did have two jobs last year - one from January to May and my current job that I started in June. Neither was self-employment though. Could that be why? Also, what should I do now? Can I fix this somehow?

15 Yes, having two sequential jobs could definitely cause this issue. When you switched jobs in June, your new employer likely calculated your withholding as if you'd make that same amount for the whole year, potentially under-withholding. You should double-check your tax return for errors first. Look for things like accidentally reporting income twice or missing deductions you qualify for. If you used tax software, try running through it again carefully. If the return is correct, you'll need to adjust your withholding for this year to avoid the same problem. Fill out a new W-4 with your employer requesting additional withholding. The IRS has a tax withholding estimator tool on their website that can help you determine how much extra to withhold.

12 Does this actually work for checking if your current tax return has errors? I'm in a similar situation where I owe way more than I expected and I'm wondering if this would help me figure out if I made mistakes.

17 I'm skeptical about these tax analysis tools. How does it actually find errors that tax software like TurboTax wouldn't catch? And how does it handle state taxes or more complicated situations?

8 It absolutely works for checking current returns for errors. You can upload your completed return and it'll analyze it against your actual tax documents to find discrepancies. It's saved many people from filing returns with mistakes. The difference between this and regular tax software is that regular software only processes what you input, but doesn't check if you're missing deductions or credits you qualify for. taxr.ai uses AI to compare your documents against tax laws and identifies opportunities most people miss.

3 How does this even work? I thought it was impossible to get through to the IRS phone lines during tax season. Do they have some special connection or something?

17 Yeah right. Nothing can get you through to the IRS faster. I've worked in accounting for years and even we can't get through most of the time. Sounds like a scam to prey on desperate people with tax problems.

20 It works by essentially waiting on hold for you using their system. When they reach an IRS agent, they call you and connect you directly. No special connection, just technology that handles the frustrating wait time for you. They use the same public IRS phone numbers everyone else does, but their system navigates the menus and waits through the hold time automatically. When an agent finally answers, that's when they call and connect you. I was skeptical too until I tried it.

6 How do I check what I put on my W-4? Do I need to ask HR for a copy? And if that's the problem, can I still fix my current tax return or is it too late?

9 You can ask your employer's HR or payroll department for a copy of your W-4 on file. They should be able to provide it or at least tell you what you selected. For your current tax return, if you've already filed it and the calculations are correct based on what was actually withheld, you can't change the outcome now. The tax bill is based on your actual income and withholding for the year. However, you can immediately submit a new W-4 to fix the problem for this year so you don't end up in the same situation next April.

2 The EITC is refundable too, so it could actually give you money back instead of just reducing what you owe! But I think there are age requirements if you don't have kids - you have to be at least 25 but under 65 to qualify without dependents.