1st Paycheck with new job

[jsbrooks79]

I am just going to put my amounts on here because the feedback I got before didn't really help. I have a FICA line on my check where 118.91 has been taken, another that says SS Tax and that is a 105.45 deduction, then a Medicare tax that is 24.67 deduction. I have NEVER had this much taken out of my check before and my status hasn't changed. I was wondering if anyone knew what I could do to make these amounts lower? Should I have filed Single instead of Head of Household on my W-4? 

[Opus 17]

As stated this has nothing to do with your W-4.

Social security tax of $105.45 corresponds to gross pay for the pay period of $1684.68.

Medicare tax of $24.67 corresponds to a gross pay of $1701.38.  Most of the time these two calculations should match, so that might already indicate a problem.

"FICA" is the name of the law that authorizes the deduction of taxes for social security and medicare tax.  If you have social security and medicare listed separately, there should not also be a deduction for FICA.  Some kind of mistake has occurred.  Talk to your employer. 

[DoninGA]

FICA stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act which for Social Security and Medicare taxes.

There is no separate FICA line or box on a W-2.

If your Social Security taxes were 105.45 and your Medicare taxes were 24.67 that indicates your taxable wages for Social Security and Medicare were approximately $1,700.

You will need to speak to your employer to determine what exactly the FICA amount of 118.91 represents.

[Opus 17]

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@DoninGA wrote:

FICA stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act which for Social Security and Medicare taxes.

There is no separate FICA line or box on a W-2.

If your Social Security taxes were 105.45 and your Medicare taxes were 24.67 that indicates your taxable wages for Social Security and Medicare were approximately $1,700.

You will need to speak to your employer to determine what exactly the FICA amount of 118.91 represents.

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I recall that many years ago, one of my employers deducted 7.65% for "FICA" instead of listing Medicare and Social Security separately.  All of my recent employers have listed them as separate items at 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare.  Regardless, no one should be paying all three lines.

[Critter-3]

First you cannot file the return before you have the actual W-2 in hand so if you are just entering in some info now to see how the return looks like so far then boxes 3 thru 6 on the W-2 are immaterial.  

CAN I USE MY PAY STUB TO PREPARE MY TAX RETURN?

Please do not try to use your pay stub to prepare your tax return.  It will not match the W-2 that you will get from your employer in just a few short weeks.  Your employer has until the end of January to give you your W-2.  By waiting for your W-2 you will be able to file accurately.  If you try to guess what goes in the W-2 “boxes” and mess up your return, you will need to amend.  It takes about 6 - 9 months to amend a tax return.  The IRS will not be accepting returns until the end of January —  so you can wait for your W-2.  If you are hoping to get a quick tax refund by filing early, using your pay stub might have the opposite result.  Your tax return will not match the W-2 reported to the IRS by your employer; this may result in rejection of your return — or if accepted, could actually delay your refund for months.  And, if you are hoping to get EIC or the child tax credit, your refund will not be released until late February anyhow due to the PATH act.  It is much wiser to wait for your W-2 and file correctly.

And….remember….ALL of your  W-2’s must go on the SAME tax return.