Dependents W4 Deduction

Forum|Forum|10 months ago
May 28, 2025
2 replies
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Hello,

My son is 17 and has been working a part time job since November 2024.

He only made a few hundred dollars in 2024 so he did not file taxes.

He still only works part time and currently is exempt on his W4 and has zero taxes taken out for Federal or State.

He works about 12 hours a week at minimum wage. Unless he adds more hours he is projected to make less than $10,000 for 2025.

When does he need to start having taxes deducted from his paychecks and how much does he need to have deducted.

We completed the IRS deduction estimator and it said nothing should be deducted.

If he does need to start deducting taxes from his checks the W4 is so confusing and we are unsure how much to have deducted and where to fill it out on the form.

Please help!!!

Thanks,

Confusedmom

Not A Product Question

Opus 17

Employee

He should NOT claim exempt on his W-4, that is only for legal exemptions like employees of the United Nations who pay tax to their home country instead of the US. He should refile a W-4 as "single."

As long as he does not have more than $2000 of investment income, his income will not be taxed until he earns more than $15,000 for 2025. However, the whole point of the W-4 system is that it is self-adjusting. If his weekly income is less than $288 (which is $15,000 divided by 52 weeks) then he should not have federal tax withheld. If his income is more than that in some weeks, there will be some tax withholding, but that is correct since it suggests his overall income for the year could be higher than you guessed and he will owe income tax. Just claim single on the W-4, and let the system work the way it is designed.

Also, state income tax may have different thresholds. He should either file a separate state withholding for claiming single, or if he files a W-4 only, most employers will use that same designation (single) for the state withholding. Claiming exempt may also cut off state withholding, which could be a problem if the taxable threshold is lower than the federal threshold.

AmeliesUncle

@Opus 17 wrote:
He should NOT claim exempt on his W-4, that is only for legal exemptions like employees of the United Nations who pay tax to their home country instead of the US.

??? I'm not sure where you are getting that, but that is not true. A person can enter "exempt" on a W-4 if they did not have any tax the previous year and expect there will be no tax in the current year. See the W-4 instructions. It is very common (and correct) for most dependents to put "exempt" on their W-4.

Opus 17

Employee

@AmeliesUncle wrote:

@Opus 17 wrote:

He should NOT claim exempt on his W-4, that is only for legal exemptions like employees of the United Nations who pay tax to their home country instead of the US.

??? I'm not sure where you are getting that, but that is not true. A person can enter "exempt" on a W-4 if they did not have any tax the previous year and expect there will be no tax in the current year. See the W-4 instructions. It is very common (and correct) for most dependents to put "exempt" on their W-4.

Nevertheless, because the system is self-adjusting, it is unwise to claim exempt, especially if someone's income is variable. Let the system work as it is designed.

VolvoGirl

Employee

He only owes tax for the income over the Standard Deduction. For 2025 the Standard Deduction is $15,000. So anything under that is not taxed.

Opus 17

Employee

@VolvoGirl wrote:

He only owes tax for the income over the Standard Deduction. For 2025 the Standard Deduction is $15,000. So anything under that is not taxed.

Unless kiddie tax on investments.

But regardless, the W-4 is self-adjusting, and claiming legally "exempt" is not recommended in case his income is higher than expected and you forget to change it later.