All employees must complete IRS Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, so that an employer may know how much income tax to withhold from wages. The withholding amount is based on marital status and number of withholding allowances. Employees may not request a fixed dollar amount or percentage of gross calculation for the withholding amount. However, employees may specify a dollar amount to be withheld in addition to the amount of withholding based on marital status and allowances claimed.

A Form W-4 claiming exemption from withholding is valid for only one calendar year. To continue the exemption for the next calendar year, employees must file a new Form W-4 by February 28th.  If your Form W-4 is not updated by that date, the tax withholding status will be changed to either 'Single' with zero allowances or to the status and allowances on the last valid W-4 on file.  This change is required by IRS regulations and will remain in place until a new Form W-4 is submitted to the Payroll Office.  Tax refunds will not be made for failure to update Form W-4 in a timely manner.

When employees claim more than 10 allowances, a copy of their Form W-4 will be forwarded to the Oregon Department of Revenue.  The IRS no longer has this requirement.

The IRS has developed an application that assists employees when they complete the IRS Form W-4. Using the on-line calculator ensures that employees do not have too much or too little income tax withheld from their paychecks. See IRS Withholding Calculator.

In cases of complex tax situations, the IRS does not recommend the use of the IRS Calculator. Instead employees should read IRS Publication 919, How Do I Adjust My Tax Withholding?

Student employees might want to visit the IRS website to read more about Taxable Income for Students. Also see IRS Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education, for more information on how much of a scholarship or fellowship is taxable.

US Citizen

1. Always provide your name in Box 1 and your Social Security Number in Box 2.
2. Complete the address portion of Box 1.
3. Leave Box 3 blank only if you are claiming exempt in Box 7.
4. Use the IRS Withholding Calculator and Form W-4 worksheets to determine the number of allowances to enter into Box 5.  Whole numbers only.
5. To claim exempt, enter the word Exempt in Box 7.  Box 5 will need to be left blank.  If both boxes have values, the form will be returned.
6. The State of Oregon does not have its own Form W-4 so if you want your filing status, allowances, or additional withholding amount to be different then your federal, submit another Form W-4 with those changes and "For Oregon Only" written at the bottom of the form.
7. Be sure to sign and date the form.  Incomplete or invalid forms will be returned to the employee.  If this occurs, the tax withholding status will be set to  'Single' with zero allowances or the last valid Form W-4 on file.

Non Resident Alien

1. Always provide your name in Box 1 and your Social Security Number in Box 2.
2. Complete the address portion of Box 1.
3. Check 'Single' in Box 3 regardless of marital status.
4. Enter '0' or '1' in Box 5.  (Special instructions below for residents of American Samoa, Canada, South Korea, Mexico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and students from India).
5. Enter the phrase Non Resident Alien or 'NRA' above the dotted line in line 6.
6. Do not claim Exempt in Box 7.  Employees who wish to be exempt from federal income taxes due to a tax treaty should refer to the International Employee webpage.

Special Instructions for Residents of American Samoa, Canada, Mexico, and the Northern Mariana Islands

Box 3 - Must check 'Single' regardless of marital status

Box 5 - May claim the same allowances as a US Citizen

Box 6 - Enter the phrase Non Resident Alien or 'NRA' above the dotted line in line 6.

Special Instructions for Residents of South Korea 

Box 3 - Must check 'Single' regardless of marital status

Box 5 - May claim '1' plus additional allowances for spouse and any dependants present in the US.

Box 6 - Enter the phrase Non Resident Alien or 'NRA' above the dotted line in line 6.

Special Instructions for Residents of India (Students Only)

Box 3 - Must check 'Single' regardless of marital status

Box 5 - May claim '1' plus additional allowances for spouse and any dependants present in the US if the spouse has no US source income.

Box 6 - Enter the phrase Non Resident Alien or 'NRA' above the dotted line in line 6.

For detailed instructions on other forms for claiming exemption from U.S. taxes, see International Employees. This section of the Business Affairs website lists countries that have international tax treaties with the United States, along with other important information specific to international employees. Additional tax information is available on the IRS website and in the following IRS Publications:

Publication 519 U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens

Publication 513 Tax Information for Visitors to the U.S.

W-4s received in the Payroll Office by mid-month will be processed for the month-end payroll.W-4s received after that time will be processed on the following month's payroll.