How much tax do you pay or owe?

Answer 1

FEDERAL TAXES ARE THE SAME THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY...YOUR STATE MAKE NO DIFFERENCE. (However, State tax laws are specific to each area, and generally follow the Federal guidelines, but not always).

Whether you have to file a tax return (or pay tax) depends, in part, on your filing status, deductions, amount & type of income. THERE ARE NO SUCH THINGS AS START AND STOP AGES, OR DON'T HAVE TO FILE (or pay) BECAUSE RETIRED, OR ON SS, OR WORK FROM HOME, OR MADE IT ON THE INTERNET, OR A STUDENT, OR IT WAS A BONUS, VACATION PAY, AWARD, OR SUCH.....it is all addressed as a matter of "how much TAXABLE income".(Note working isn't relevant either, as many people who don't work or are retired, or disabled, or old, or young, or in school, have income from many sources...savings, investments, etc. and TAXABLE income is different than what you may otherwise think of as income...in most circumstances you have to do many of the calculations needed to file a return, just to determine what taxable income may be).

Likewise, there are no special or fixed rates for retired, student, doctor, sanitation worker, President, convict...whatever. The amount of taxable income after applicable deductions and adjustments determines the rate applied to your particular situation. The rate, as well as the amount, you pay changes as the amount of income does. And it changes and is a different amount for each person, based on their own situation. And, the amount any person may pay is normally different on say dollar 1 as compared to dollar 25,000

Once put through the calculations, some may be taxable income and some may not...some taxable income may not be taxable TODAY, but is later, or it may be offset by losses, many things can happen.

The amount withheld or estimated payments doesn't change how much you pay, just when you paid it. These items are discussed in other questions, but they are under YOUR control, not your employer etc. But they are required or there will be penalties.

I am always astounded that people ask questions of this variety...if anyone claims to provide an answer for you the only thing you can be sure of is it is wrong. I can only ask back, to those of you posting questions saying 'how much tax do I pay on X $" -- Do you really think that's all there is to it?

Start with what do YOU mean by tax, or withholding? Seems everyone here has a different definition, and most don't put any thought into that there may be a difference at all or the obvious difference state by state and frequently city to city. Do you mean Federal Income Tax? How about State income Tax? What about FICA? Disability? Unemployment? Consider, even your private medical insurance and retirement (or other employer benefits) may have contributions "withheld" from your gross pay. Most of these are elections made by you or your employer and no one else really knows anything about.

FIRST OFF TAX IS CALCULATED ON TAXABLE INCOMEWHICH IS NOT THE SAME AS WHAT WAS "MADE" USING ANY OTHER METHOD. IT IS NOT YOUR SALARY. IT MUST BE DETERMINED TO CALCULATE TAX. Income of different types is taxed differently, if at all, and each person is taxed differently. DETERMINING IT IS 99% OF MOST TAX MATTERS. Hence there is no tax bracket, or percent or anything for "someone making X$". Whatever the amount is, one could pay nothing, to a very high percent, depending on what results when calculating taxable income.

After determining if your even taxable at all, much more goes into determining how much tax is due, and even how much was paid. Again, sometime in life you must have heard things, spoken and written about virtually everyday, in news, social, school and business situations and concerning tax. Things like location, marital status, number of dependents, how much and type of deductions or expenses you have (like medical or interest paid on a home), how or the costs in how the money was made....etc, etc! Maybe your just think all that applies to everyone else and not you? UNDERSTAND 2 PEOPLE, WORKING AT THE SAME JOB MAKING THE SAME WAGE, WILL ALMOST NEVER PAY THE SAME TAX!

Other than their personal situations like married or not, children or other dependents, charitable contributions, what they choose and how the employer handles medical, retirement and many other elections at work, what if any interest or other taxes they pay, how they spend their money....and many other elections surrounding how any one person chooses to handle their filing options, their investments and much, much more...the differences that result can be substantial.

Heck, every year you probably see a local TV station having 10 experts (normally incl the IRS too), calculate the tax for someone...and get 10 different answers...most all of which may actually be right!

And also, you must have seen all those companies and software sellers advertising programs, etc, etc that do this - calculate tax and prepare returns - for people. You may well have noticed there are entire professions, an industry of billions of dollars of revenue, with lots of busy people, again many spending large advertising amounts to get business of preparing and planning how to change or effect the tax due for those even in fairly easy circumstances? Not to mention that most all of those brightest and most informed financial (or otherwise) people seek out and hire specialized people to handle figuring their tax out, and pay large sums to do so. (Think they would miss that the answer is just a number somewhere that simply applies to them? Just something already determined and you can ask on the internet?)

It is probably a good indicator you need to get professional assistance in doing it (handling your tax AND financial affairs), and also start learning what is involved, because the one that can do it best for you....is you!

Virtually no 2 people with even the same job and income, or getting income from some source, will owe the same tax. That is why all those steps, forms and considerations that must be addressed and then properly applied need to be done.