W4 question

Debbiefannin — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 21:44:17 GMT

I am retired and currently receive a retirement pension of about 4000/mo. Starting this year (in Jan) is am receiving SS of about 800/mo.

I am working a small side job where I make about 10000/yr. Because of this amount, my employer did not take out federal taxes.

when I did my taxes, I owe about 1100. When I asked my employer to start taking out taxes, I was told to change my w4.

How should I change my w4 some break even (or close to it) next year?

Re: W4 question

MonikaK1 — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 22:02:26 GMT

Since you have multiple sources of income, you could choose to take out taxes from your pension or your social security to make up the difference. In order to change your W-4 for your employer, you can fill it out at the job or complete one in TurboTax, print it out and give it to the employer.

Adjusting your tax withholding isn't difficult. All you need to do is fill out a new Form W-4 and give it to the correct department at your employer. Most often, this is the human resources or payroll department.

The Form W-4 only requires you to fill out a few lines of information and tax withholding calculators can help you figure out what to input on each of those lines. To use it, you'll need to know some basic information about your tax situation. These factors typically include:

filing status
number of dependents you plan to claim on your return
age of those dependents
information about pay from jobs
pension income
contributions to tax-advantaged accounts such as 401(k)s, HSAs, FSAs, IRAs
adjustments to income such as student loan interest paid
whether you take the Standard Deduction or itemized deductions
any tax credits you take advantage of
other sources of income and tax payments

When reviewing the last item in the list — other sources of income — be sure to consider investment income such as:

interest
dividends
capital gains
rental income
alimony

These are not usually subject to withholding but most likely affect the amount of tax that you have to pay, and so reporting it on your W-4 could be beneficial.

The required information can usually be found on your prior year's tax return or your current pay stubs. You'll need to make adjustments for changes from the previous year to make sure it reflects your current situation.

Once you complete the form, give it to your employer. Then, keep a close eye on your next few paychecks to see how the changes impacted your federal income tax withholding.

If you make a change in the middle of the year, it's wise to fill out a new form at the beginning of the next year. The adjustments made may result in incorrect results if enacted for a full tax year rather than just part of a year.
Filling out a new Form W-4 at the beginning of the year should put you on track for the future.

If you don't know whether you'll likely receive a refund or owe money, TurboTax’s tax withholding calculator can help you figure out what to expect. Then, you can decide if you need to fill out a new Form W-4.

See this help article with video and this tax tips article for further instructions.

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W4 question

Re: W4 question