Filling out W4 for primary job when you also have other employment as a W9 independent contractor

John Doe421 · ‎July 27, 2022

If you are filing as a single tax payer without dependents, how should you go about filling out the W4 for the higher income job when you also have W9 self employment income?

Dual Job Details:

W4 job Salary Range: $40,000-$50,000
W9 self employment range: $8,000-$15,000

My objective is to be able to get the most out of my paychecks at the Primary job without having to owe back taxes for self employment for the 2022 filing year.

Do I check Step 2 line (C)?

Step 2(B) line 3?

Step 2(B) line 4?

If possible can you brief me on the pros and cons of a number of scenarios of not reporting a second income on the W4 vs claiming a second income source? Which is the most beneficial?

much thanks,

OmM1 · ‎July 27, 2022

HI John Doe421

Thank you for reaching out with your question.

At the outset let me clarify that filling our W4 will not take care of your Self Employment Taxes (on W9 income) automatically.

To take care of income taxes on Self Employment income, you should report estimated income on step 4(a) of W4 form. To take care of Self Employment Taxes, you should calculate the same separately, divide the amount by the number of remaining pay checks and request the amount as Extra Withholding on step 4(c).

Since your are single with no dependents and no second salaried job, please do not complete the step 2 or 3 on the W4 form.

Hope this answers your question and following this will get you proper withholding such that you should not owe much also not expect any significant refund.

Not filling out your Self Employed Income information, may result in your owing taxes at the end of the year. This may not only upset your budget but may also cause you to pay interest and penalties to the IRS for underpayment of your taxes.

Please feel free to reach out again, should you have another question or need any further clarification(s).

Thank You,

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Filling out W4 for primary job when you also have other employment as a W9 independent contractor

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