IRS Releases Draft of 2019 Form W-4 August 1, 2018

The IRS has released a redesigned Form W-4 for 2019. The draft Form W-4 is only two pages (the 2018 Form W-4 is four pages.) The “Personal Allowances Worksheet,” the “Deductions, Adjustments and Additional Income Worksheet,” and the “Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs
Worksheet” have all been eliminated.

There is no place on the form to report the number of allowances claimed. Instead, the form has added lines for the optional reporting of non-wage income that isn’t subject to withholding, expected bonuses, itemized deductions and expected credits, and the wages of other members of
the taxpayer’s household.

   Query. Will employees want to provide this information to their employers?

The 2019 draft Form W-4 has 11 pages of instructions (the current W-4 includes its instructions in the four page form.) The expansive instructions result in a “projected 1040.” While this method may result in more accurate withholding, gathering the information and completing the
calculation will be a burden on many taxpayers.