Form W-4 is an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax form that is filled out by employees to indicate their tax situation to their employer. Employees fill out a W-4 form to let employers know how much tax to withhold from their paycheck based on the employee's marital status, number of exemptions and dependents, etc. The money paid for taxes, the employer is obliged to pay to the IRS.
Below we will explain how to fill out this form and what you should pay attention to.
The first few lines include the taxpayer's name, address, and Social Security number. A worksheet included with the form lets taxpayers estimate the number of allowances on their tax withholding. Increasing the number of allowances reduces the amount of money withheld from the paycheck. In this segment, you also define the way you will file taxes.
In order for all taxes to be reported to the tax authorities, it is necessary to provide personal data, exact current address and SSN (Social Security Number) on the W-4 form.
Fields 2-4 are filled in only if they apply to you - if you have two or more jobs, or file a tax with your spouse and other close family members.
In the last, fifth segment, it is necessary to sign the document in order to be valid.
It is very important that you put the correct address on the W-4 form. The address you provide is the address to where your employer will send you a W-2 form, necessary to send a tax claim to the IRS. So, if you provide a temporary residence address in the USA, you may not receive a W-2 form.
W-8 forms are Internal Revenue Service forms completed by non-residents or entities who want to apply for a refund of taxes paid on their earnings. These forms are filled out by employees who are not U.S. citizens but have worked for U.S. companies during the year and earned some income. They must submit this form to verify their country of residence for tax purposes, certifying that they qualify for a lower withholding tax rate. You get the W-8 form from your employer, and the type of W-8 form you fill out depends on the type of income you earn.
Although the W-8 forms are issued by the IRS, they are submitted only to payers or withholding agents, not to the IRS. Individuals must submit the form to the payer or withholding agent prior to receiving income or credits from them. Failure to submit the form may result in a withholding at the full 30% rate that applies to foreign entities.
There are five W-8 forms: W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, W-8ECI, W-8EXP and W-8IMY. All W-8 forms are valid for the year in which they are signed and for three full calendar years after that.
Thanks to the W-8 forms, non-residents whose earnings are subject to taxation in the USA, can be entitled to a refund of part of the tax already paid. When paying the salary to the employee, the employer is obliged to keep 30% of the salary in the name of the federal tax.
You must send the W-8BEN form you fill out to your employer in order to receive your first payment, regardless of whether you will later apply to the IRS for a tax refund. You receive the W-8BEN form from the company that pays you. Only non-residents can complete this form. The document you fill out is valid for three fiscal years.
W-8 forms are quite complex, and the content of the form depends on the type of income you receive.
The information you have to provide: your full name, country of residence, home address and tax ID number (if available).
W8-BEN-E is a form that applies to legal entities, not individuals.
A U.S. resident or alien with permanent residence will never have to fill out a W-8 form.