Q. Why do I owe federal taxes when I am a w-2 employee?
A. First, being a W-2 employee is not, of itself, a reason for not owing taxes. It's usually a simple matter of not having enough tax withheld from your pay. It could be an error on your part (you filled out the W-4 form at work wrong) or you employer did it wrong. It is common for employees, without dependents, to owe tax at tax filing time.
