Should I use my college rental address or parent's home for W4 tax form?

The address you put on your W4 and I-9 forms should be your current residential address - where you actually live most of the time. Since you're renting near college and working in that same town, using your college address makes perfect sense. For the I-9, this is especially important because it's verifying your identity and eligibility to work in the US, so they need your current address. For the W4, the address is primarily used for the employer to know where to send tax documents like your W-2 at the end of the year. You'll want those documents sent where you'll actually receive them. Don't worry too much - this isn't going to affect your tax liability or your parents claiming you as a dependent. Those determinations are based on other factors like who provides your financial support, not the address on your employment forms.

I went through this exact situation last year during my senior year. After trying to figure it out myself and getting conflicting advice, I ended up using taxr.ai https://taxr.ai to analyze my situation. Basically, they confirmed that for W4/I-9 purposes, you should use your college address since that's where you're actually living most of the year and working. The site helped me understand that this doesn't impact your dependent status on your parents' taxes at all. Their document analyzer tool checked all my paperwork and flagged a few issues I would have completely missed. Saved me from a potential headache when filing season came around.

Just wanted to update after checking out taxr.ai that I mentioned in the previous comment. It was actually super helpful for my situation! The analyzer confirmed that I could maintain my legal domicile in my parents' no-income-tax state while attending college elsewhere, as long as I met certain criteria (keeping my driver's license there, registering to vote there, returning during breaks, etc). It gave me specific language to use on my W4 form and explained exactly how to handle the "multiple states" scenario. Would have taken me hours of research to figure all that out on my own. Definitely worth checking out if you're in a complicated student situation like this.

If you're still having issues figuring out your tax situation, another problem students run into is actually reaching the IRS when you have questions. I tried calling them directly about my dependent status while working last semester and literally spent HOURS on hold. I found this service called Claimyr https://claimyr.com that got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes instead of waiting for hours. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c For my student tax situation, I needed specific clarification about having jobs in different states while being claimed as a dependent. The IRS agent I spoke with gave me the exact guidance I needed for my W4 forms.

So I actually tried Claimyr after posting my skeptical comment above. I have to admit I was completely wrong. I called the IRS directly twice last week trying to get help with my W4 as a dependent student with multiple addresses, and couldn't get through after 2+ hours each time. With Claimyr, I got through to an IRS agent in about 20 minutes today. The agent confirmed exactly what others here said - use your current address where you actually live (college rental) for employment forms, and it won't affect dependent status. They also explained that I should update my address if I move permanently, but temporary summer moves back home don't require updates unless I'm expecting mail. Honestly thought this would be a waste but getting an official answer directly from the IRS was worth it to stop stressing about making a mistake.

Just adding another perspective - I've been a student with jobs in multiple states. The W4 address is really just for correspondence purposes. Your tax HOME (legal domicile) is a different concept than the address on your W4. If your parents provide more than half your support and you meet the other dependent criteria, they can still claim you regardless of what address you put on work forms. Just make sure you fill out the dependent section of your W4 correctly so your employer withholds the right amount of tax!

Maybe I'm missing something obvious but why not just use both addresses? List your college address as your mailing/current address for correspondence, but indicate your parents' home as your permanent address? That's what I did throughout college with no issues. Employers and schools understand students have this dual-address situation.

As someone who's been through this exact situation, I'd recommend using your college rental address on both the W4 and I-9 forms. That's where you're actually living and working, so it makes the most sense from a practical standpoint. The key thing to remember is that your W4 address doesn't determine your tax residency or dependent status - those are based on completely different factors like financial support and where you spend most of your time throughout the year. Since your parents are still claiming you as a dependent, that arrangement stays the same regardless of what address you put on your employment forms. One tip: make sure to check the "dependent" box in Step 3 of your W4 so your employer withholds the correct amount of taxes. Also, if you're concerned about receiving your W-2 next year, most employers now offer electronic delivery anyway, which eliminates any worry about mail forwarding. You're doing fine with the adulting thing - this stuff is confusing even for people who've been doing it for years!

I had this same dilemma when I started working during college! The general rule is to use your current residential address - the place where you actually live and sleep most nights. Since you're renting near campus and working in that town, your college address is definitely the right choice. One thing I learned the hard way is that consistency matters. Since you already used your college address when applying for the job, stick with that for all your employment paperwork. It'll make things cleaner if any issues come up later. Don't stress about this affecting your dependent status with your parents - that's determined by completely different factors like who provides your financial support, not what address you put on work forms. Your parents can still claim you as a dependent as long as you meet those other requirements. Pro tip: When you fill out your W4, make sure to indicate that you can be claimed as a dependent in Step 3. This will help ensure the right amount of taxes are withheld from your paychecks. You've got this - navigating taxes as a student is tricky but you're asking all the right questions!

I've been handling payroll for college students at my company for about 5 years now, and this is one of the most common questions we get! You're absolutely on the right track using your college rental address. From an employer perspective, we need your current residential address for several reasons beyond just mailing your W-2. It affects things like workers' comp coverage, emergency contact procedures, and sometimes even which state unemployment insurance we need to pay into. Since you're physically living and working in the college town, that address makes the most sense. The good news is that your dependent status with your parents is completely separate from your employment address. That's determined by IRS dependency tests (support, age, residency throughout the year, etc.) rather than what's on your W-4. One thing I always tell our student employees: if you're planning to move back home after graduation, give us a heads up a few weeks before you leave so we can update your address in our system. It's much easier to handle proactively than trying to track you down to deliver your final W-2! You're asking all the right questions - shows you're taking this seriously. Most students just fill out forms without thinking about the implications.