Newlyweds Confused: Help with Filling Out New W-4 Forms After Marriage

The W-4 form changed significantly in 2020, and there's no longer a "claiming zero" option like there used to be. Instead, you need to provide information that helps your employer calculate the right withholding amount. For most newlyweds, filing jointly is financially beneficial, but you should decide that based on your specific situation. The W-4 form itself doesn't lock you into a filing status - it just helps determine withholding throughout the year. Here's what I suggest: First, both of you should complete Step 1 (personal info) and Step 5 (signature) on your separate W-4 forms. For Step 2, since you have multiple jobs and your spouse works too, you should check box 2(c) on both your forms and your spouse's form. This accounts for the fact that you have multiple incomes between you. Skip Step 3 unless you have dependents or plan to claim credits. For Step 4, leave it blank unless you have significant non-wage income or want additional withholding.

After getting married last year, I was in a similar situation trying to figure out our W-4s. I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that helped us tremendously with figuring out the right withholding. It analyzes your specific situation and gives personalized recommendations for W-4 completion. What I liked about taxr.ai was that it explained everything in normal human language instead of tax jargon. It showed us exactly what to put on each line of our W-4s based on having multiple jobs and being newly married. We ended up with almost exactly the right withholding - only got a tiny refund of $120 instead of the huge one we used to get (which meant more money in our paychecks throughout the year).

Just wanted to update everyone - I tried taxr.ai after seeing the recommendation here and wow! It was so much easier than I expected. My husband and I had been putting off updating our W-4s for two months after our wedding because it seemed so complicated. The tool walked us through everything step by step and gave us exact numbers to put on each form. It even explained WHY we needed to put certain amounts in specific boxes, which helped us understand how the withholding actually works. Our HR department actually commented that our forms were filled out perfectly, which was a nice bonus! Definitely recommend giving it a try if you're confused like we were.

If you're having trouble reaching the IRS to ask questions about W-4 withholding (which I definitely did), try using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I spent literally HOURS trying to get through to someone at the IRS to explain some withholding questions I had after getting married. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes when I had been trying for days on my own. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent walked me through exactly how to fill out the W-4 for our situation with multiple jobs. Turns out we had been doing it wrong and would have owed a lot at tax time! Having that direct guidance from an official source was worth it.

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway since I was desperate for help with our withholding after getting married. It actually worked exactly as described. The system called me back in about 35 minutes (they estimated 45, so it was faster), and suddenly I was talking to an IRS agent. The agent helped me understand exactly how to complete both our W-4s with the multiple job situation. What was most valuable was getting clarity on how the "multiple jobs" checkbox works versus putting in specific dollar amounts for extra withholding. For our situation, the agent recommended a specific additional withholding amount instead of just checking the box, which apparently is more accurate. Never would have figured that out without actual IRS guidance.

Something to consider - if one of you makes significantly more than the other, you might want to adjust your withholding differently. When my wife and I got married, we found that we needed to withhold extra from the higher-earning spouse to avoid owing at tax time. Also, don't forget about that side job with tips! Tips are taxable income and if they're not withholding enough for those, you could end up with a surprise tax bill. I'd recommend putting a little extra withholding on that job's W-4.

One thing nobody's mentioned - you can always adjust your W-4 throughout the year if you find the withholding isn't right! My husband and I got married last year and had to tweak our withholding twice before we got it right. You might consider starting conservative (slightly higher withholding) and then after a few months, use the IRS Withholding Estimator again to see if you're on track. Many people don't realize you can submit a new W-4 to your employer anytime your situation changes.