Will I get in trouble if I filed as single when married for tax withholding?

So I just realized that my employer has been withholding taxes from my paychecks at the "single" rate even though I've been married for almost 6 years now. I started at this new company back in April and somehow my filing status got marked as single on my W-4 form. I've been trying to get the payroll department to fix this for almost three weeks now but keep getting passed around between different people with no resolution. I'm concerned about two things: 1) Will the IRS come after me because my employer has been withholding at the wrong rate? and 2) Will I be able to get back all the extra money they've been taking out of my checks when I file my taxes? I'm pretty frustrated because I'm guessing they've been holding out WAY more than necessary, and that's money I could've been using for bills this whole time. Anyone have experience with this situation?

0 coins

20 comments

Ravi Sharma

•8M

Don't worry, you're not in any trouble with the IRS over this. The withholding status on your W-4 only affects how much tax is taken from each paycheck - it's not the same as your actual filing status when you submit your tax return. What's happened is that your employer has been withholding at the "single" rate, which is typically higher than "married filing jointly" rate. This means they've been taking MORE tax from your checks than probably needed. The good news is that you'll get all that extra withheld money back as a refund when you file your tax return, assuming you file as married (either jointly or separately) which is your actual status. For your actual tax return, you'll file with your correct marital status regardless of what your employer has been withholding. Just make sure you do correct your W-4 with your employer as soon as possible so your future paychecks have the right withholding amount.

0 coins

Ravi Sharma

•8M

Yes, you'll also get back any excess withholding when you file your taxes. The "married but withhold at higher single rate" option just means you chose to have more taken out throughout the year (similar to the single rate). It doesn't change your actual filing status - it only affects your paycheck withholding. When you file your tax return, you'll still file as married (jointly or separately), and any excess tax that was withheld will be returned to you as part of your refund. This option is actually popular for couples where both spouses work, as it helps avoid owing money at tax time.

0 coins

Omar Hassan

•8M

Yes, it can give you a midyear estimate with pretty good accuracy! I uploaded my latest paystubs and it calculated based on projected income for the rest of the year. It also lets you add investment income and other sources - that's actually one of the reasons I chose it. As for why it's better than the IRS calculator, I found it much more user-friendly and it explained things in plain English. It's not just about the calculation but understanding what's happening. I tried the IRS tool first and got confused with all the terminology. And it was significantly cheaper than the quote I got from a CPA for what I needed.

0 coins

Chloe Taylor

•8M

Just wanted to follow up - I actually tried taxr.ai after asking about it here. It was exactly what I needed! I uploaded my documents and it showed that I'm on track to get about $3,200 back at tax time because of the withholding mistake. The visualization really helped me understand how the withholding works with my specific situation. I was able to print out a detailed explanation that finally convinced my HR department to fix my W-4. Thanks for the recommendation!

0 coins

Diego Ramirez

•8M

If you're still having issues getting your employer to update your W-4, you might want to try Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I had a similar issue that dragged on for months, and I ended up needing to talk directly to the IRS about how to handle it. The problem was I could never get through to them - kept getting busy signals or disconnected after waiting forever. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of the hours I was spending trying on my own. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The agent was able to confirm exactly what I needed to do and gave me specific language to use with my HR department. Apparently employers have certain obligations around W-4 processing that mine wasn't aware of.

0 coins

Diego Ramirez

•8M

It doesn't jump ahead of anyone - it basically automates the calling process. Their system repeatedly calls the IRS using the right number sequences and navigates the phone tree, then alerts you when it actually connects to a human. So instead of you having to redial dozens of times and wait on hold, their system does it. I'm not sure about the technical details, but it worked for me. I installed their app, told it what IRS department I needed to reach, and then went about my day. About 15 minutes later it alerted me that an agent was on the line. No magic or special access - just technology automating a tedious process.

0 coins

ShadowHunter

•8M

OK I have to eat my words. I tried Claimyr yesterday out of frustration after spending 3 hours trying to get through to the IRS about this exact withholding issue. Got connected in 27 minutes while I was making dinner. The IRS agent confirmed everything people are saying here - withholding at single rate when you're married isn't a problem for the actual taxes, you'll get the difference back when you file. They also gave me the exact section of the tax code to reference with my employer, who finally fixed my W-4 today. Never been so happy to be wrong about something!

0 coins

Sean O'Connor

•8M

Yes, definitely check your state tax withholding as well. If your federal withholding is set to single, there's a good chance your state withholding is also using the single rate. Many states base their withholding on your federal W-4 information, so the same error could be affecting both. When you get your W-4 corrected, make sure they update both federal and state withholding status. This could mean even more money coming back to you at tax time if both have been withholding at the higher single rate.

0 coins

Sayid Hassan

•4M

This is actually a really common mistake, and you're definitely not alone in dealing with this! I went through something similar when I switched jobs a few years ago. The good news is that everyone here is right - you won't get in trouble with the IRS, and you'll likely get a nice refund since they've been overwithholding from your paychecks. One thing I'd suggest is to document all your attempts to get HR to fix this. Keep emails, notes from phone calls, etc. While it shouldn't be necessary, having a paper trail can be helpful if there are any delays or complications down the road. Also, once they do fix your W-4, you might want to use the IRS withholding calculator (on their official website) to double-check that your new withholding amount looks reasonable for the rest of the year. Since you've already had extra taxes taken out for several months, you might want to adjust your withholding to account for that so you don't end up with an enormous refund (some people prefer getting their money throughout the year rather than waiting for tax season). Hang in there - this will get sorted out and you'll get that money back!

0 coins

Landon Flounder

•4M

This is really helpful advice about documenting everything! I've been dealing with a similar situation at my company and didn't think about keeping records of all my attempts to get it fixed. Quick question - when you used the IRS withholding calculator, did you find it pretty straightforward to use? I've heard mixed things about how user-friendly it is, and I want to make sure I get the adjustments right once my HR finally fixes my W-4. Also, do you remember roughly how long it took your company to actually process the W-4 change once they agreed to fix it? I'm hoping it won't take several more pay periods for the correction to show up on my paystubs.

0 coins