Your Form W-4 decides how much federal income tax your employer takes out of every paycheck. Getting it right helps you avoid both a surprise bill and an oversized refund.
This guide walks through each step of the 2026 Form W-4, how to handle multiple jobs, credits and other income, extra withholding and the rules for claiming exemption, using the IRS form and its instructions.
The IRS says to complete Form W-4 so your employer can withhold the correct federal income tax from your pay. If too little is withheld you will generally owe tax when you file and may owe a penalty; if too much is withheld you will generally get a refund. Complete a new form when changes in your personal or financial situation would change the entries. Read your pay stub to see what is being withheld; see our pay stub guide.
| Step | What to enter | When you need it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Name, address, Social Security number and anticipated filing status (1(c)), which sets the standard deduction and tax rates used for withholding | Always |
| 2 | Other jobs: option (a) estimator, (b) the worksheet, or (c) the two-job box | More than one job at once, or married filing jointly with both spouses working |
| 3 | Child tax credit ($2,200 per qualifying child under 17) and credit for other dependents ($500 each), plus other credits you choose to include | If you will claim credits; the form's child and dependent amounts apply if your total income will be $200,000 or less ($400,000 or less if married filing jointly) |
| 4(a) | Other estimated income not from jobs or self-employment | If you want tax on interest, dividends or retirement income withheld |
| 4(b) | Deductions beyond the standard deduction, including itemized deductions and deductions for qualified tips, overtime, passenger vehicle loan interest, student loan interest, IRAs and seniors | If you expect to claim more than the standard deduction |
| 4(c) | Extra withholding per pay period | If you want more withheld |
| 5 | Sign and date | Always |
The IRS tells people with several jobs to complete Steps 3 through 4(b) on only one Form W-4, and says withholding is most accurate if you do so on the form for the highest paying job.
Use Step 2 if you have more than one job at the same time or you are married filing jointly and you and your spouse both work. Submit a separate Form W-4 for each job. Option (a), the IRS estimator, is the most accurate and option (b) is a little less accurate. With only two jobs in total you can instead check the box in option (c) on both forms, which cuts the standard deduction and tax brackets in half for each job when computing withholding. The IRS warns this is accurate for jobs with similar pay; otherwise more tax than necessary may be withheld. If you have privacy concerns about the information Step 2(c) asks for, you can choose Step 2(b) instead.
You may claim exemption for 2026 only if you had no federal income tax liability in 2025 and expect to have none in 2026. If you claim it, no income tax is withheld from your paycheck and you may owe taxes and penalties when you file. You complete Steps 1(a), 1(b) and 5, check the exempt box, and must submit a new Form W-4 by February 16, 2027.
Next year: the IRS has posted an early-release draft of the 2027 Form W-4, marked not for filing. The draft keeps the same two exemption conditions for 2027 and says to submit a new form by February 15, 2028. Use the final 2026 form for now and check the IRS Form W-4 page for the final 2027 version.
For the child tax credit the child must be under age 17 on December 31, be your dependent who generally lives with you for more than half the year and have the required Social Security number; see our child tax credit guide. Step 4(a) is for other income such as interest or dividends, not for jobs or self-employment. If you have self-employment income and want to pay the tax through withholding, use the IRS estimator at irs.gov/W4App; otherwise see our estimated tax guide. The IRS suggests the estimator if you submit the form after the beginning of the year, expect to work only part of the year, have changes in marital status, number of jobs, dependents, deductions or credits, or receive dividends, capital gains, Social Security, bonuses or business income. Nonresident aliens should read Notice 1392 first.
| Situation | What the instructions point to |
|---|---|
| Married filing jointly, both spouses work, similar pay | Each spouse completes Step 2; checking the option (c) box on both forms cuts the standard deduction and brackets in half for each job |
| Two jobs with very different pay | Use option (a) or (b) in Step 2, because the IRS says the (c) box can over-withhold when pay differs |
| Starting a job in October | Consider the IRS estimator, which the instructions suggest if you submit the form after the beginning of the year |
These are our illustrations of the IRS instructions, not IRS examples.
IRS: Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate (2026), IRS Tax Withholding Estimator.