Rave-Unicorn-Votive t1_jeeh4iy wrote on March 31, 2023 at 12:56 PM

>no deductions

>I'm not withholding anything

You seem to be confused on terminology. If you're not withholding anything, ie you have $0 deductions for taxes on your paychecks, then of course you'll owe at the end of the year.

If you are confusing 'withholdings' with the outdated and no longer in existence 'allowances' and think that "claiming 0" means maximum withholding…it does not. Maximum withholding would be 100% of your paycheck.

Assuming you are neither withholding $0 nor 100%, if your tax bracket is ≥24% and your commissions are withheld at the supplemental rate of 22%, you will always be under withheld on the year unless you adjust your W4 to compensate by over withholding your regular paychecks.

megarooski3 t1_jeei375 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 1:03 PM

Not sure if it even matters, but also may be important to know I'm a full time employee and not an independent contractor.

megarooski3 t1_jeehkif wrote on March 31, 2023 at 12:59 PM

It is 100% likely I'm messing up terminology.

Yes, I don't claim allowances. I do see on each paycheck that federal taxes ARE taken out of my commission, but I have never inputted to withhold more from them (if that makes sense). I have never designated a % to further withhold.

gooberfaced t1_jeelsel wrote on March 31, 2023 at 1:32 PM

> It is 100% likely I'm messing up terminology.

Yes, you even confuse "return" and "refund"- the most basic of terms.

>I'm not withholding anything

That's your problem.
Go to https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator and see how that plays out.

itsdan159 t1_jeenm1j wrote on March 31, 2023 at 1:46 PM

>Yes, you even confuse "return" and "refund"- the most basic of terms.

And also among the most commonly misused so it's not like OP isn't in very large company.

penguinise t1_jeeq1iq wrote on March 31, 2023 at 2:03 PM

You should check the withholding rate on your commissions. Chances are that it is exactly 22%.

If your other wages are at least $109,225 (2023, Married filing separately) then this rate is too low. You need to add additional withholding to the regular checks to make up for the shortfall. The IRS calculator may be able to help.

Based on the size of your shortfall, you also need to make sure that your filing status on W-4 is Single or Married filing separately, or if it is joint that you take an adjustment for the other job in the household.