No federal taxes on my paychecks - does social security and Medicare count as federal withholding or is this a separate line item?

The short answer is no - Social Security and Medicare taxes (often called FICA taxes) are completely separate from federal income tax withholding. They should appear as separate line items on your pay stub. Federal income tax withholding is based on your W-4 information and should definitely be listed separately from FICA taxes. If you don't see any federal income tax being withheld, that's a problem that needs immediate attention. Your employer might be using incorrect withholding information, or there might be an issue with how your W-4 was processed. Take a closer look at your pay stub - sometimes federal withholding might be labeled as "FIT" (Federal Income Tax), "Fed W/H," or something similar. If it's truly not there, I'd recommend speaking with your payroll department right away.

After struggling with a similar withholding issue last year, I stumbled across taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it was a complete lifesaver! I uploaded a picture of my paystub and it immediately identified that my federal withholding was missing while my FICA taxes were correct. The tool actually explained that these are completely different taxes - FICA funds Social Security and Medicare specifically, while federal withholding is for your income tax obligation. Their system also analyzed my W-4 settings and showed me exactly where the error was. In my case, I had accidentally checked the wrong box that made me exempt from withholding. Might be worth checking your W-4 settings through their analyzer to see what's happening with yours.

Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai from the suggestion above. I was seriously confused about my withholdings but didn't want to look stupid asking HR. I uploaded my last paystub and the system immediately pointed out that I was missing federal withholding entirely despite having FICA taxes properly withheld. Turns out I had accidentally checked the "Exempt" box on my W-4 when I started this job six months ago! No wonder I wasn't seeing any federal tax withholding. The tool gave me step-by-step instructions for filling out a new W-4, which I submitted to HR yesterday. They were actually really nice about fixing it right away. Now I'm a bit worried about owing a bunch at tax time, but at least it's fixed going forward.

If you're having trouble getting answers about your withholding situation, I'd recommend calling the IRS directly. I know, I know - everyone says it's impossible to get through, but I used this service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and got connected to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes! You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was in a similar situation where my withholding seemed off, and I needed official clarification. The IRS agent I spoke with explained exactly how federal withholding is separate from FICA taxes (Social Security and Medicare) and helped me understand how my W-4 settings were affecting my withholding. They even sent me forms to correct the issue.

OK I need to apologize for my skepticism earlier. After being frustrated with trying to figure out my withholding situation for weeks, I finally broke down and tried the Claimyr service mentioned above. I was connected to an IRS agent in about 15 minutes, which honestly shocked me. The agent confirmed that federal income tax withholding is completely separate from Social Security and Medicare taxes. She explained that I needed to submit a new W-4 form to my employer ASAP since having zero federal withholding would likely result in a large tax bill next year. She even walked me through how to properly fill out the form based on my specific situation with dependents. I'm usually the last person to recommend paying for something you can technically do yourself for free, but in this case, it saved me hours of frustration and probably a big tax headache later.

Have you checked if you're actually listed as an employee (W-2) or if they've classified you as an independent contractor (1099)? If you're a 1099 worker, they wouldn't withhold any taxes at all - you'd be responsible for paying quarterly estimated taxes yourself.

I had this exact problem last year and ended up owing over $3,000 at tax time! Check your W-4 immediately - specifically box 7. If you checked "exempt" there (even by accident), no federal income tax will be withheld. Social Security and Medicare (FICA) are totally separate taxes and will still be withheld regardless of your W-4 settings.

This is a really important issue to address quickly! As others have mentioned, Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA) are completely separate from federal income tax withholding - they should never be counted as part of your federal withholding amount when using tax software. Since you mentioned claiming $5,500 in dependents on your W-4, it's possible that this amount was high enough to reduce your federal withholding to zero or near zero, especially if your income falls within certain brackets. However, you should still see a line item on your paystub for federal taxes, even if it shows $0. I'd recommend taking a photo of your most recent paystub and checking with your HR department to confirm your W-4 was processed correctly. With two children under 17, you'll likely qualify for significant tax credits, but it's still better to have some federal tax withheld throughout the year rather than owing a large amount at tax time. Also, make sure you're not accidentally classified as exempt from withholding - this is a common mistake that can lead to big tax bills later!

I just went through something very similar! After reading through all these responses, I realized I made the same mistake as several others here - I had accidentally marked myself as exempt on my W-4 when I started my job. What really helped me understand the difference was looking at my pay stub more carefully. FICA taxes (Social Security at 6.2% and Medicare at 1.45%) come out automatically regardless of your W-4 settings, but federal income tax withholding is completely separate and based on your W-4 information. Since you mentioned claiming $5,500 for your dependents, that's actually a significant amount that could legitimately reduce your federal withholding to zero or very low amounts. However, you should still see a line item for federal taxes on your pay stub, even if it shows $0. I'd definitely recommend speaking with your payroll department ASAP to verify your W-4 was processed correctly. With two kids under 17, you'll get substantial Child Tax Credits, but it's usually better to have some federal tax withheld throughout the year rather than potentially owing a large amount at filing time. You can always adjust your W-4 again if too much is being withheld once you get it sorted out.

Just to add another perspective here - I work in payroll and see this confusion all the time! You're absolutely right to be concerned about not seeing federal tax withholding on your paystub. Here's what might be happening: When you filled out your W-4 and claimed $5,500 in dependents, that amount gets factored into a formula that determines how much federal tax should be withheld from each paycheck. With two kids under 17 and that amount claimed, it's entirely possible that the calculation resulted in $0 federal withholding - especially if your income falls within certain brackets. However, even when the calculated withholding is $0, most payroll systems will still show a line item for "Federal Tax" or "FIT" on your paystub - it'll just display $0.00. If you're not seeing that line at all, that's usually a red flag that something went wrong with processing your W-4. I'd suggest bringing your most recent paystub to HR and asking them to verify that your W-4 information was entered correctly into their system. They should be able to show you exactly what withholding elections they have on file for you. Better to catch this now than get hit with a surprise tax bill next April!