Disclaimer: I am not a tax professional, this is not tax advice, and I'm not your lawyer either!
> We have that [a employer withholding system] in Australia, and it definitely simplifies the process for workers at the end of the year.
We have that in America too, only it complicates our tax forms.
When filling out your Form 1040s, under "Payments" you fill field 64 "Federal income tax withheld from Forms W-2 and 1099" from your employer-provided W-2's field 2 "Federal income tax withheld" (ignoring fields 4 and 6, "Social security tax" and "Medicare tax" withheld.) And of course, any 1099-Rs with federal income tax withheld must also be attached to your tax return...
You can ask your employer to adjust your withholding - if you owe too much money (more than $1000 and more than 10% of your total yearly taxes?) come tax time, you'll have to pay an additional penalty. If you paid too much already, the government can wire it back to you, or apply it to next year's taxes.
> Personally, I've always liked the idea of a 'standard deduction'
We have this in America, it's great - mine was "only" $6300 this year (single, no dependents). On the other hand, there are deductions for everything from mortgages to electric vehicles (expiring after this tax year), which can add up quick. Fortunately I'm not there... yet...
> We have that [a employer withholding system] in Australia, and it definitely simplifies the process for workers at the end of the year.
We have that in America too, only it complicates our tax forms.
When filling out your Form 1040s, under "Payments" you fill field 64 "Federal income tax withheld from Forms W-2 and 1099" from your employer-provided W-2's field 2 "Federal income tax withheld" (ignoring fields 4 and 6, "Social security tax" and "Medicare tax" withheld.) And of course, any 1099-Rs with federal income tax withheld must also be attached to your tax return...
You can ask your employer to adjust your withholding - if you owe too much money (more than $1000 and more than 10% of your total yearly taxes?) come tax time, you'll have to pay an additional penalty. If you paid too much already, the government can wire it back to you, or apply it to next year's taxes.
> Personally, I've always liked the idea of a 'standard deduction'
We have this in America, it's great - mine was "only" $6300 this year (single, no dependents). On the other hand, there are deductions for everything from mortgages to electric vehicles (expiring after this tax year), which can add up quick. Fortunately I'm not there... yet...
I got lucky this year: Only 5-6 forms to mail.