Can You Withdraw Money From Income Tax Return

Cheat Sheet to Federal Income Tax Rates and Income Withholding

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Federal income tax rates and withholding often seem opaque to both employees and employers. As an employee, you are surprised to see that your paycheck is well below what you might expect from the monthly salary agreed to with your employer. This is because, under U.S. law, an employer is required to withhold a certain amount from paychecks each month.

The employer has the further responsibility of remitting this withheld tax to the IRS as well as to the local state on a regular schedule. The amount of withholding is dependent upon the gross wage of the employee as well as the employee's marital status and tax residency status. The IRS publishes federal tax withholding charts to guide employers on the amount to withhold.

Federal Tax Rates Table

You can use federal tax rate calculators to estimate your total income tax for the year. Federal tax brackets for 2018, for example, are as follows for individuals:

Income of $9,526 to $38,700 - 12% federal income tax rate
Income of $38,701 to $82,500 - 22% federal income tax rate
Income of $82,501 to $157,500 - 24% federal income tax rate
Income of $157,501 to $200,000 - 32% federal income tax rate
Income of $200,001 to $500,000 - 35% federal income tax rate
Income of $500,000 or more - 37% federal income tax rate

Married people filing jointly will have higher thresholds for these taxes. Employees at different income levels will experience different withholding levels in anticipation of the required tax for that tax bracket. For example, for 2018, the withholding rates for a single person are as follows for selected monthly income levels:

$1,102-$3,533: withholding is $79.40 plus 12% of excess over $1,102
$3,533-$7,183: withholding is $371.12 plus 22% of excess over $3,533
$7,183-$13,433: withholding is $1,174.12 plus 24% of excess over $7,183

Taxing of Retirement Income

You might be surprised to learn that you will be taxed on retirement income as well. You will be assessed tax on your "combined income", which is the income you receive from Social Security combined with all other income you have in retirement.

For example, if you hold stocks or equity in a business and you receive a dividend or capital gains, that income will be subject to tax. For annuities, the amount of tax will depend on whether you paid for the annuity pre-tax or with after-tax dollars. Annuities bought with after-tax dollars will incur no tax on the principal, but will incur a tax on any gains in the value of the investment.

Federal tax rates on retirement income range from 0% all the way up to 45% depending on the source of retirement income. Some retirement accounts, such as Roth IRA, qualify for tax-free treatment. Others, such as traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, will be subject to normal income tax brackets.

You may be able to deduct certain expenses from your retirement income, which will reduce your tax bill each year. For example, when you have to pay certain medical expenses out of pocket, some of these can be added to your deductions for the year.

Taxes on Inheritance

If you receive an inheritance, you will want to pay attention to the hefty tax bill that is often associated with this. The federal government imposes one of the highest taxes on wealth acquired through inheritance. At a rate of 40%, the estate tax is assessed when an individual or couple bequeath wealth to heirs at their death.

The only bright side of the inheritance tax is that the tax only kicks in for estates of $5.43 million or more if the giver is an individual. For couples, the tax kicks in at $10.86 million.

Employment Taxes for Businesses

When a new business opens up, it has to get a federal tax EIN number. EIN stands for Employer Identification Number. This is analogous to an individual's Social Security Number, but for a business.

After obtaining your EIN, you must start paying and filing the due taxes with the IRS. It is important to note that both employers and employees must pay employment taxes. These are broken down into the following:

Social Security - Employee pays 6.2 percent, and employer pays an equal 6.2 percent.
Medicare - Employee pays 1.45 percent, while employer pays 1.45.
Federal Unemployment Tax - Employer pays 6.0% on the first $7,000 that an employee earns per year.