2025 State Tax Withholding Forms (State W-4s)
February 05, 2025
What is a W-4 Form?
Form W-4 (a.k.a., Tax Withholding Exemption Form or Employee’s Withholding Certificate) is one of several employee tax forms used to inform employers how much income tax to withhold from each worker’s gross wages.
The details provided on the forms are based on the employee’s personal and financial circumstances, such as their:
- Filing status (e.g., single, married, head of household, etc.)
- Number of dependents (e.g., children)
- Claimed exemptions or allowances (e.g., Health Savings Account (HSA) withdrawals)
- Additional sources of income, if any
What is the Purpose of the W-4 Form?
Employers rely on withholding forms to accurately apply tax withholding tables, rates, exemptions, etc., and deduct the correct amount of federal and state income tax from each employee’s paycheck. This, in turn, allows employees to efficiently manage their tax deductions and avoid underpayment penalties.
Employees aren’t required to update their W-4 forms annually but should review and revise them whenever a significant life or financial change occurs, such as marriage, a new job, or childbirth.
Key Takeaways
- State tax withholding forms (a.k.a. state W-4 forms) report employee tax information to employers (e.g., dependents, exemptions, etc.) and affect how much income tax is withheld from each paycheck.
- Due to the impacts on immediate net pay and annual tax returns, it’s in each employee’s best interest to update their W-4 information whenever starting a new job or experiencing a major life event, such as marriage or childbirth.
- Employers should also prioritize familiarity with state tax form requirements to ensure compliance and avoid potential penalties.
What is the State Version of a W-4?
Each state W-4 form serves the same purpose as the federal IRS Form W-4 but for state income tax instead of federal income tax. Moreover, since state tax rates, exemptions, deductions, etc., vary, each state version of the form may have a different name, customized fields, unique instructions, etc.
Some states, however, don’t have a tax withholding form, either because they defer to the IRS’ federal version or they don’t collect state income tax.
State Tax Withholding Form Trends
The federal W-4 form underwent a significant redesign in 2020 to reflect changes from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), such as eliminating personal exemptions and increasing standard deduction amounts.
As a result, the updated W-4 removed allowances and added fields for reporting additional income, dependents, deductions, and extra withholding.
In response, some states created or updated their state tax withholding forms to retain allowances or reflect local tax rates and unique state tax laws and credits. For example, the current Maryland withholding form calculates withholdings with allowances and incorporates local tax rates. The California tax withholding form also includes allowances and state-specific credits.
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State |
State Withholding Form |
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Alabama |
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Alaska |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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Arizona |
Form A-4 |
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Arkansas |
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California |
Form DE-4 |
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Colorado |
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Connecticut |
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D.C. |
Form D-4 |
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Delaware |
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Florida |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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Georgia |
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Hawaii |
Form HW-4 |
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Idaho |
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Illinois |
Form IL W-4 |
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Indiana |
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Iowa |
Form IA W-4 |
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Kansas |
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Kentucky |
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Louisiana |
Form L-4 (Contained within Form R-1300) |
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Maine |
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Maryland |
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Massachusetts |
Form M-4 |
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Michigan |
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Minnesota |
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Mississippi |
Form 89-350 |
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Missouri |
Form MO W-4 |
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Montana |
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Nebraska |
Form W-4N |
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Nevada |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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New Hampshire |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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New Jersey |
Form NJ-W4 |
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New Mexico* |
N/A (Uses federal W-4) |
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New York |
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North Carolina |
Form NC-4 / NC-4EZ |
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North Dakota |
N/A (Uses federal W-4) |
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Ohio |
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Oklahoma |
Form OK W-4 |
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Oregon |
Form OR W-4 |
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Pennsylvania |
Uses flat rate with no allowances/exemptions |
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Rhode Island |
Form RI W-4 |
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South Carolina |
Form SC W-4 |
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South Dakota |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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Tennessee |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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Texas |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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Utah |
N/A (Uses federal W-4) |
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Vermont |
Form W-4VT |
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Virginia |
Form VA-4 |
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Washington |
N/A (No state income tax) |
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West Virginia |
Form WV IT-4 |
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Wisconsin |
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Wyoming |
N/A (No state income tax) |
*Can submit a second W-4 marked "for New Mexico use.”
Employee Obligations and Considerations
Since this state tax form influences how much income tax employers withhold from each paycheck, it affects the employee’s immediate net pay and whether their state tax return ultimately receives a tax refund, has no balance due, or requires an additional payment.
Moreover, a state’s income tax system may include deductions, credits, or exemptions the federal system doesn’t. Therefore, it’s in each employee’s best interest to ensure state withholding forms accurately reflect their current finances and living situation.
Suppose, for example, a 25-year-old employee starts a new job, files their state W-4 as a single taxpayer with no dependents, and their employer withholds taxes accordingly. Years later, the employee marries, has children, and files jointly with their spouse.
Unless the employee submits an updated W-4 form for each life change, their employer will continue using the withholding calculations for single filers with no dependents or exemptions. This discrepancy can create excessive or insufficient withholdings from each paycheck, resulting in less income each pay period or additional payments owed on the employee’s state tax return.
Employer Obligations and Considerations
Employers must responsibly manage employee tax withholding information, such as verifying submitted details and promptly adjusting information in response to employee-provided updates. Submitted forms should be securely stored, and records of payroll filings reporting withheld taxes should be retained for at least four years after the worker’s employment ends.
If an employee doesn’t submit a federal or state withholding form, employers should follow default withholding procedures. Typically, this involves withholding taxes at the highest applicable rate. For instance, if a federal W-4 form isn’t submitted, the employer must withhold taxes at the single-filer rate until the employee adjusts their information.
To ensure compliance, employers should prioritize being familiar with state tax regulations and form requirements, which can vary significantly from other states and federal standards. Not doing so risks incorrect withholdings, missed deadlines, inaccurate W-2 forms, and financial penalties.
Secure Payroll Tax Compliance with Paylocity
Keeping up with changing tax rates and forms can be a nightmare, even if your entire workforce is in the same state. Updating, storing, and maintaining that information can be even more challenging as organizations grow and evolve.
That’s why having the best payroll software and tools makes a world of difference. Lower the stress of compliance with Paylocity’s payroll tax services:
- Tax geolocation audits to ensure employees are set up to pay the correct taxes based on their location.
- Robust document management features that make uploading, storing, and retrieving tax forms a breeze.
- Default configurations and overrides to automate manual steps and ensure completeness of payroll data.
Request a demo today and see how much easier payroll tax management can be.
