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Form W-4 changes coming in 2020

The University of Florida expects to have the new 2020 W-4 form available in myUFL’s My Self Service by mid-January of 2020. Due to federal tax law changes that took place in 2018, the 2020 Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate, is very different from previous versions.

While the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is not requiring all employees to complete the revised form, those employees hired in 2020 and anyone who makes withholding changes during 2020 will be required to use the new form. The IRS has designed the withholding tables so they will work with both the new and prior year forms.

Even though the IRS does not require all employees to complete the revised form and even if your tax situation has not changed, UF Payroll Services recommends you perform a “paycheck checkup” to see if you need to make adjustments to your current withholding. To conduct the checkup, you can use the IRS’s Tax Withholding Estimator. Be sure to have a copy of your most recent pay stub and tax return ready for easier estimating. The estimator is expected to account for the 2020 tax tables beginning in early January.

If you do not submit a new form, withholding will continue based on your previously submitted form.

Before completing the 2020 Form W-4, please read the instructions that are included with the form. You must complete Steps 1 and 5. Steps 2, 3 and 4 are optional, but completing them will help ensure your federal income tax withholding will more accurately match your tax liability. Step 1 is for your personal information; Step 2 is for households with multiple jobs; Step 3 is used to claim tax credits for dependents; Step 4 is for other adjustments (additional income such as interest and dividends, itemized deductions that exceed the standard deduction, and extra tax you want withheld); and Step 5 is where you sign the form.

The IRS takes your privacy seriously and suggests that, if you are worried about reporting income from multiple jobs in Step 2 or other income in Step 4(a), you check the box in Step 2(c) or enter an additional withholding amount in Step 4(c). To determine the additional withholding amount, you can use the withholding estimator.

The IRS has also published Frequently Asked Questions you may find helpful as you complete the form.

If you have any questions please contact Payroll Services at payroll-services@ufl.edu.

Published: January 2nd, 2020

Category: News