How much tax on unemployment benefits in Washington - confused about withholding
I'm getting ready to file my taxes and I'm completely lost about how much tax I owe on my unemployment benefits from last year. I received about $18,000 total from Washington ESD between March and September. I didn't have any taxes withheld because I thought I could handle it myself, but now I'm panicking. Does anyone know what percentage I should expect to pay? I made about $32,000 total income for the year including my part-time job. Really worried I'm going to owe a huge amount.
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Malik Davis
Unemployment benefits are taxed as regular income at your normal tax rate. Since you made $32k total, you're probably in the 12% federal bracket plus whatever Washington state... oh wait, Washington doesn't have state income tax so that's good news for you.
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Emma Wilson
•So I only owe federal taxes on the unemployment? That's a relief, I was worried about state taxes too.
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Malik Davis
•Exactly, just federal. You'll get a 1099-G form from Washington ESD showing exactly how much you received.
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Isabella Santos
I learned this the hard way last year. Unemployment is taxable income just like wages. The $18k gets added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rate. You should have gotten a 1099-G from Washington ESD by now.
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Emma Wilson
•I got the 1099-G but wasn't sure what to do with it. So I just add that $18k to my W-2 income when filing?
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Isabella Santos
•Yes, it all goes on your tax return as income. The 1099-G goes in the unemployment compensation section.
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Ravi Gupta
With $32k total income you're looking at 12% federal rate on the unemployment portion, plus FICA might apply depending on your situation. But honestly, dealing with tax questions while trying to get through to Washington ESD for other issues has been impossible. I used Claimyr.com to actually reach someone at ESD when I had questions about my 1099-G amount. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ showing how it works. Made the whole process so much easier than spending hours on hold.
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Emma Wilson
•Never heard of Claimyr but getting through to ESD is definitely a nightmare. Did they actually help you with tax-related questions?
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Ravi Gupta
•They helped me verify the amount on my 1099-G was correct and explained how the withholding election worked for future claims.
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GalacticGuru
•Wait, you can elect to have taxes withheld from unemployment? I had no idea!
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Freya Pedersen
HOLD UP - unemployment benefits are NOT subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA). Only federal income tax applies. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I see this mistake all the time.
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Ravi Gupta
•You're absolutely right, I misspoke about FICA. Thanks for the correction!
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Emma Wilson
•So it's just regular federal income tax then? No additional taxes?
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Freya Pedersen
•Correct - just federal income tax at your normal rate. No FICA, no state tax in Washington.
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Omar Fawaz
ugh this is exactly why I always elect 10% withholding on my unemployment claims. Better to get a refund than owe money come tax time.
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Emma Wilson
•How do you set up the withholding? I don't remember seeing that option when I filed my claims.
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Omar Fawaz
•It's in your eServices account under claim settings. You can change it anytime during your claim.
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Malik Davis
For your specific situation with $32k total income, you'll probably owe around $2,160 in federal taxes on that $18k unemployment (12% rate). But definitely use tax software or see a preparer to be sure.
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Emma Wilson
•That's actually not as bad as I feared. I was thinking it might be 25% or something crazy.
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Chloe Anderson
•Don't forget you might qualify for some credits that could reduce what you owe too.
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GalacticGuru
I'm in a similar boat but made even less income. Does anyone know if there's a minimum amount before you have to pay taxes on unemployment?
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Malik Davis
•There's no special minimum for unemployment - it's just part of your total income. If your total income is below the standard deduction ($13,850 for single filers in 2023), you might not owe any federal tax at all.
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GalacticGuru
•Oh that's helpful! I only made about $12k total so maybe I'm okay.
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Diego Vargas
Just a heads up - if you owe more than $1,000 in taxes, you might also owe underpayment penalties for not making quarterly estimated payments. Something to keep in mind for next time.
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Emma Wilson
•Ugh, more penalties? This keeps getting worse.
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Diego Vargas
•It's usually not too bad, maybe $50-100 depending on the amount. The IRS form 2210 calculates it automatically.
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Isabella Santos
Pro tip: if you're still collecting unemployment, log into your eServices account and set up tax withholding NOW. Save yourself this headache next year.
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Emma Wilson
•Good advice. I'm not on unemployment anymore but I'll remember that if I ever need it again.
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Anastasia Fedorov
•Can you change the withholding amount after you've already started collecting?
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Isabella Santos
•Yes, you can change it anytime. Just go to the tax withholding section in your eServices account.
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StarStrider
The worst part is Washington ESD doesn't make this clear when you're filing your initial claim. They should warn people about the tax implications upfront.
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Emma Wilson
•Totally agree! I had no idea unemployment was taxable until I started researching for tax season.
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Sean Doyle
•They do mention it but it's buried in all the other paperwork. Easy to miss.
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Freya Pedersen
Quick summary for everyone confused: Unemployment = taxable income, federal only in WA, taxed at your regular rate, no FICA taxes, can elect 10% withholding, 1099-G shows total received. That covers most of the basics.
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Emma Wilson
•Thank you! This is exactly the summary I needed.
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Zara Rashid
•Super helpful breakdown, saving this comment for reference.
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Luca Romano
I actually had to call Washington ESD about my 1099-G because the amount seemed wrong. After hours of busy signals, I found this service called Claimyr that actually got me through to someone. Turns out there was an error in my paperwork from months ago that affected the total.
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Emma Wilson
•How did Claimyr work? I've never been able to get through to ESD by phone.
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Luca Romano
•They basically handle the calling for you and get you connected to an actual person. Way better than sitting on hold for hours.
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Nia Jackson
been there with the tax surprise. ended up owing about $1800 on $15k unemployment. Definitely setting up withholding if I ever have to file again.
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Emma Wilson
•Ouch, that's a big chunk. Did you have to set up a payment plan with the IRS?
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Nia Jackson
•Yeah, they let me pay it over 6 months with minimal interest. Not too bad actually.
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Mateo Hernandez
Don't forget you can also deduct job search expenses if you kept receipts! Might help offset some of that tax bill.
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Emma Wilson
•What kind of job search expenses count?
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Mateo Hernandez
•Things like resume printing, mileage to interviews, job fair costs. Has to be for the same type of work though.
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CosmicCruiser
•Actually I think job search deductions were eliminated in recent tax law changes. Better double check that.
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Aisha Khan
This thread is making me nervous about my own taxes. I got unemployment from two different states last year after moving. Is that going to be more complicated?
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Malik Davis
•You'll get 1099-G forms from both states but just report the total on your federal return. The state where you lived at year-end usually gets the state tax portion if applicable.
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Aisha Khan
•Thanks, that makes sense. At least Washington doesn't have state income tax!
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Ethan Taylor
PSA: If you're doing your own taxes, make sure your tax software has the 1099-G section. Some of the free versions don't include all the forms you might need.
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Emma Wilson
•Good point. I was planning to use the free TurboTax but maybe I need the paid version.
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Ethan Taylor
•The free version should handle 1099-G fine. It's more the complex business forms that require paid versions.
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Yuki Ito
Honestly, after dealing with all this tax confusion, I wish there was just an option to have them withhold 15% automatically instead of having to think about it.
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Carmen Lopez
•You can set it to 10% withholding which is pretty close. Better than nothing!
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Emma Wilson
•10% might not be enough if you're in a higher tax bracket though.
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Yuki Ito
•True, but it's better than zero withholding like I did last year.
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Andre Dupont
Just filed my taxes and can confirm - unemployment shows up as regular income on line 7 of the 1040. Nothing too complicated about it once you know where it goes.
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Emma Wilson
•That's reassuring. I was worried it would be some complex calculation.
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Andre Dupont
•Nope, just add it to your other income and let the tax software calculate everything.
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QuantumQuasar
One thing people forget - if you had taxes withheld from unemployment, that counts toward your total tax payments for the year. Check box 4 on your 1099-G to see if any federal tax was withheld.
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Emma Wilson
•Mine shows zero in box 4 since I didn't elect withholding. Guess I'm paying it all now.
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Zoe Papanikolaou
•Same here. Lesson learned for next time!
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Jamal Wilson
For anyone still confused about reaching Washington ESD with tax questions, I had success with Claimyr too. They got me through to someone who could explain exactly how my 1099-G was calculated. Worth checking out their demo video if you're struggling with ESD phone lines.
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Emma Wilson
•I might look into that. Still have some questions about my 1099-G amount.
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Jamal Wilson
•It's at claimyr.com if you want to check it out. Saved me hours of frustration.
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