IRS · Federal
Fill out a W-4 on your phone
A W-4 tells your employer how much federal income tax to withhold from each paycheck. You fill one in when you start a job and again whenever your situation changes. Only Steps 1 and 5 are required; the middle steps fine-tune the amount withheld.
- Form
- Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate
- Source
- IRS: About Form W-4
- Length
- 1 page to fill (plus worksheets and instructions)
- Cost
- Free. Public-domain government form; we link the agency's own PDF rather than hosting a copy, so you always get the current revision.
What the W-4 is for, and who fills it in
What it is for. Your employer uses the W-4 to work out federal income tax withholding from your wages. Too little withheld means a bill in April; too much means a bigger refund but smaller paychecks.
Who fills it in. Employees. Independent contractors do not use a W-4 (they get a W-9 request instead). Each job gets its own W-4.
Where it goes. To your employer or their payroll provider, not to the IRS. You can submit a new one at any time.
The fields that matter
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Step 1, Personal information | Name, address, Social Security number and filing status (single or married filing separately; married filing jointly or qualifying surviving spouse; head of household). Required. |
| Step 2, Multiple jobs or spouse works | Complete only if you hold more than one job at a time, or you are married filing jointly and your spouse also works. Choose one option: the IRS online estimator, the Multiple Jobs Worksheet on page 3, or the checkbox in 2(c) when there are only two jobs with similar pay. |
| Step 3, Claim dependents and other credits | Only on the W-4 for your highest-paying job. Multiply qualifying children under 17 and other dependents by the amounts printed on the form, add any other credits, and enter the total. |
| Step 4, Other adjustments | 4(a) other income not from jobs, such as interest or retirement income; 4(b) deductions beyond the standard deduction, from the Deductions Worksheet; 4(c) any extra tax you want withheld from each paycheck. |
| Step 5, Sign here | Signature and date. Required. The form is not valid without it. |
| Employers only | The bottom block (employer name, address, first date of employment, EIN) is for your employer. Leave it blank. |
How to fill out the W-4 in FormFill
- Get the official PDF onto your phone. Tap the agency link above and save the PDF (on iPhone, Share, then Save to Files; on Android it lands in Downloads). Only use the agency's own copy: the form changes, and an old revision can be rejected.
- Import it into FormFill. Open FormFill and tap Import PDF, then pick the file. FormFill writes on top of the page, so it does not matter whether the PDF has fillable fields or is a flat scan.
- Fill the fields. Tap Text, then tap where an answer belongs and type it. Drag to move, pull a corner to resize. Use Check for the checkboxes and Date where a date is asked for. Pinch to zoom on the small boxes.
- Sign it. Tap Sign to draw your signature (or reuse a saved one with Pro) and place it on the signature line, not on the printed-name line. Initials covers any initial boxes.
- Finish and send. Tap Done. FormFill flattens your entries into the PDF and offers Share a copy or Save to device. Open the exported file once before you send it.
On this form: Place a Check in exactly one filing-status box in Step 1(c). Leave the Steps 2 to 4 boxes empty unless they apply to you; a blank there is correct, not an omission. Use Sign and Date in Step 5.
Mistakes to avoid
- If you have two or more jobs, Steps 3 and 4(b) go on only one W-4 (the highest-paying job). Filling them on every job over-reduces your withholding.
- The checkbox in Step 2(c) must be checked on both jobs' W-4s to work as intended.
- Changing your W-4 does not change withholding already taken; it applies to future paychecks.
- The IRS Tax Withholding Estimator (linked from the IRS page above) is the most accurate way to fill Steps 2 to 4.
Fill out the W-4 in FormFill
FormFill opens the official PDF on your phone, lets you tap anywhere to type, check, date and sign, then flattens a clean copy to send. No account, no upload, no subscription needed to finish your first document. Available on iPhone and Android.
Questions people ask
Which parts of the W-4 are required?
Step 1 (personal information and filing status) and Step 5 (signature and date). Steps 2, 3 and 4 are optional adjustments; leaving them blank results in withholding based on your filing status alone.
Do I need a new W-4 every year?
No. A W-4 stays in force until you replace it. Submit a new one when you marry or divorce, add a dependent, take a second job, or your withholding turned out too high or too low last year.
Does my W-4 go to the IRS?
No. It goes to your employer. Employers only send a W-4 to the IRS if the IRS specifically asks for it.
Can I fill in the W-4 worksheets in FormFill too?
Yes. The Multiple Jobs Worksheet and Deductions Worksheet are pages of the same PDF. Type into their lines the same way, then carry the results to Steps 2 and 4 on page 1.
Source checked 2026-10-16 against IRS: About Form W-4. The PDF link points at the agency's own file, which is in the public domain; FormFill does not host or alter it.