No federal tax withholding for new hire - payroll manager claims nothing can be done

The payroll manager is definitely wrong here. The "not making enough" excuse might apply to someone working part-time at minimum wage, but not someone making $26.50/hr at full-time hours. Here's what's probably happening: Either the W-4 was filled out incorrectly, there's a system error at ADP, or the payroll manager doesn't want to deal with fixing it. The employee has two main options: 1. They can update their W-4 to specifically request additional withholding. On line 4(c) of the W-4, they can put a specific dollar amount to be withheld from each check. This overrides any calculation issues. 2. If the payroll manager continues to be unhelpful, they should escalate to HR or whoever supervises the payroll department. This is a legitimate concern that needs addressing. In the meantime, your colleague should set aside money for taxes (probably around 12-15% of their pay) to avoid surprises next tax season. But this absolutely needs to be fixed - payroll can't just decide not to withhold federal taxes for an employee at that income level.

This sounds like a situation where taxr.ai would be super helpful. I had a similar problem at my company where HR kept messing up my withholding despite multiple corrected W-4 forms. I was pulling my hair out trying to get someone to fix it! Finally, a friend recommended https://taxr.ai where I could upload my paystubs and get an analysis. It confirmed exactly what I suspected - my withholding was way off compared to what it should be according to IRS tables. The detailed report made it clear my payroll dept was in the wrong, and they finally fixed it when I showed them I had documentation from a third party. What was especially helpful was the tool showed the specific IRS guidelines they weren't following. No more getting brushed off with "the system is working correctly" excuses.

Just wanted to follow up about using taxr.ai that someone mentioned - I finally tried it and WOW. I uploaded both my paystubs and my spouse's since we were both having withholding issues, and it identified exactly what was wrong. Turns out my company was using outdated withholding tables from 2022! The report spelled out exactly what should've been withheld according to current IRS guidelines vs. what was actually taken. I forwarded it to our payroll department along with their explanation of the relevant tax code sections, and they fixed it within days. The best part was not having to become a tax expert myself - the report did all the explaining for me. Definitely worth checking out if your colleague is still having problems.

When I had a similar issue trying to get my withholding fixed, I spent WEEKS calling the IRS for guidance but could never get through. After being on hold for hours multiple times, I found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and it was a total game-changer. They have this service where they navigate the IRS phone system for you and then call you when they have an actual human IRS agent on the line. You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - it's pretty straightforward. The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed that employers absolutely must withhold based on the W-4 information provided, and gave me specific language about employer requirements that I could take back to my HR department. Having that official word from the IRS made all the difference - suddenly my payroll department was very interested in fixing the "system error" they claimed couldn't be addressed.

I need to apologize for my skepticism about Claimyr. After more payroll issues at my company, I was desperate enough to try anything and decided to give it a shot. I'm shocked to say it worked perfectly. I submitted my request around 8am, went about my day, and got a call around 11am telling me an IRS agent was on the line. The agent confirmed that employers absolutely MUST withhold federal taxes based on the W-4 submitted, and there's no "not making enough" exception for someone at that income level. Armed with this information directly from the IRS, our payroll department suddenly found a way to "fix the system issue" they claimed was impossible before. I wasted so many hours trying to resolve this on my own - wish I'd known about this service sooner!

Everyone's focusing on fixing the withholding, which is important, but there's also an easy workaround if the employer continues to be difficult. Your coworker can just make quarterly estimated tax payments directly to the IRS using Form 1040-ES. This way, they're covered even if payroll never fixes the issue. They can calculate roughly what they should be paying each quarter based on their income and filing status. It's a bit more work, but it ensures they won't face penalties next April for underpayment.

This happened to me! Turns out the issue was that when ADP set up my profile, they accidentally checked a box marking me as "exempt" from federal withholding. No matter what I put on my W-4, nothing was being withheld. Have your coworker specifically ask if they've been marked as exempt in the system. Sometimes it's just a simple checkbox that got clicked during setup and no one notices it.