View and update Form W-4 tax withholding elections (for employees and admins)

Learn where in Gusto you can manage your W-4 information. If you’re using the Gusto mobile app, you can view, edit, and sign your W-4 using these mobile app instructions.

Your Gusto experience may look different from what is shown in this video.

You need to sign your Form W-4 to tell your employer how much tax to withhold from your paychecks.

To sign your federal or state Form W-4 in Gusto:

1. Sign in to your Gusto employee account.
   • If you’re using the Gusto mobile app, you can view, edit, and sign your W-4 using these mobile app instructions.
2. Go to Documents.
   • If you’re still onboarding, you need to enter your federal tax details before we create your Form W-4 for you to sign:
     • Go to My profile.
     • Click Taxes.
     • In the Federal card, click Edit.
3. Find Form W-4, and under the Actions column, click Sign.
   • You can also click the name of the form to e-sign.
4. Type your full name and check the box to sign electronically.
5. Click Sign.

You can view your signed W-4 forms at any time to check your withholding information.

To view your federal or state Form W-4 in Gusto:

1. Sign in to your Gusto employee account.
   • If you’re using the Gusto mobile app, you can view, edit, and sign your W-4 using these mobile app instructions.
2. Go to Documents.
   • If you’re still onboarding, you need to enter your federal tax details before we create your Form W-4:
     • Go to My profile.
     • Go to Taxes.
     • In the Federal card, click Edit.

Once the form is available in your Documents, find Form W-4 and select it.

Update your federal tax withholding elections on a computer

For personal tax advice, consult a CPA or licensed tax advisor—we cannot advise on your personal W-4 elections. If needed, additional resources can be found below the instructions. 

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Click My profile.
3. Under "Additional", click Taxes.
4. In the “Federal” card, click Edit.
   
   • The selections you’ll make correspond to the IRS’s Form W-4.
5. Box 1(c)–Enter your federal filing status, this is the only required field.
   • More information about the “Head of household” option can be found by clicking the question mark icon on this IRS page (next to the question itself).
   • If you select “Exempt from withholding,” we will not withhold federal income taxes, but we'll still report taxable wages on a W-2.
     • Keep in mind: Anyone who claims exemption from withholding needs to sign a new W-4 (or update their withholding in Gusto) by Feb 15 of each year—more information below.
6. Complete the optional next sections only if they apply to you—otherwise, skip them.
   • Box 2(c)–Multiple job: Answering this results in higher withholding, but to preserve privacy, this can be left unchecked.
   • Box 3–Dependent total: If your total income will be $200,000 or less ($400,000 or less if married filing jointly), add the amounts below and enter the total in Gusto.
     • Multiply the number of qualifying children under age 17 by $2,000;
     • Multiply the number of other dependents by $500.
   • Box 4(a)–Other income, not from jobs: If you want tax withheld for other income you expect this year that will not have withholding, enter the amount of other income here. This may include interest, dividends, and retirement income.
   • Box 4(b)–Deductions: If you expect to claim deductions other than the standard deduction and want to reduce your withholding, use the "Deductions Worksheet" on page 3 of the W-4 instructions and enter the result in Gusto.
   • Box 4(c)–Extra withholding: Enter any additional tax you want to withhold each pay period.
7. Click Save.
8. Click Sign Document and sign your new W-4 form.
   • You can also review and sign this form later in your Documents section.

Your changes will take effect the next time your employer runs payroll. On or after the check date, view your paystub and review your withholding under “Employee Taxes Withheld.” 

Update your tax withholdings in the Gusto mobile app

1. Sign in to your account on the mobile app¹.
2. In the top-right corner, select the You icon.
3. Select Tax Elections. 
4. Click edit for the sections that need to be updated.
5. Click Save. 
6. Click Sign Document and sign your new W-4 form.
   • You can also review and sign this form later in your Documents section.

Your changes will take effect the next time your employer runs payroll. On or after the check date, view your paystub and review your withholding under “Employee Taxes Withheld.”

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Related resources

• Form W-4 and the Form W-4 worksheet
• About Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate
• IRS tax withholding estimator
• Gusto’s blog on how to fill out the 2024 W-4

Re-certify your federal tax exemption status each year by February 15

1. Sign in to Gusto before Feb 15 of each new calendar year. 
2. Click My profile.
3. Under "Additional", click Taxes.
4. In the “Federal” card, click Edit.
5. Confirm your current filing status.
   • If you continue to select "Do Not Withhold," Gusto will not withhold federal income tax from your wages. All taxable wages will still be reported on your W-2.
6. Fill out the remaining fields.
7. Click Save.
8. Click Sign Document and sign your new W-4 form.

Update your state tax withholding elections 

1. Sign in to Gusto.
2. Click My profile.
3. Under "Additional", click Taxes.
4. In the applicable “[State]” card, click Edit.
5. Enter your state filing status.
   • If you choose "Do Not Withhold," or in some state-specific cases, "Yes, you're exempt from withholding," Gusto will not withhold state income tax from your wages. All taxable wages will still be reported on your W-2.
6. Fill out the remaining fields.
7. Click Save.

Your changes will take effect the next time your employer runs payroll. On or after the check date, view your paystub and review your withholding under “Employee Taxes Withheld.” 

Your W-4 shows information from other details you or your admin entered in Gusto. You can update some details yourself. Your admin needs to update other details for you.

Check out the articles below to see who can make the update:

• Personal details you can update yourself
• Details your admin needs to update for you

You can view any employee’s W-4 to check their withholding elections and verify they signed the form.

To view a team member’s Form W-4 in Gusto:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Go to People.
3. Click the employee’s name.
4. Under Additional, click Documents.
5. Click View next to Form W-4.

You can download a package with all your employees’ Form W-4s as a .zip file. You can only do this once per day.

Depending on the file size, your .zip file may take some time to create.

To download all Form W-4s in Gusto:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Go to Documents.
3. Under Team, click Bulk downloads.
4. On the W-4 row, click Generate.
   • These packages do not update automatically, so we recommend clicking Generate before downloading to make sure your download includes the most current employee information.
5. Wait for the W-4 package to generate.
   • If you try to download a new package while the other is still being generated, you will download the old file.
6. Click Download — this will always download the last fully generated file.

The download usually finishes quickly. However, if your company has many employees, check back in about 5 minutes to see if your .zip file is ready.

You must keep original Federal Form W-4s for each employee for 4 years. The IRS may ask to review them.

Save W-4s after onboarding

Once an employee has finished onboarding, print or save their original W-4 right away. If an employee updates their withholdings and you have not stored the original, you will lose access to it.

If the employee did not complete their Gusto setup themselves, print the form and have them sign it in person.

Store the original W-4s manually or upload them back into Gusto.

Use these steps to enter tax details if an employee does not provide a new W-4 to confirm their exemption status.

To enter their tax details:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Go to People.
3. Find the employee and click their name.
4. Under Additional, click Taxes.
5. Scroll to the Federal section and click Edit.
6. In Step (1c), update their federal filing status to Single or Married filing separately.
7. Leave Step (2c) as is.
8. Make sure Steps 3, (4a), (4b), and (4c) of the Form W-4 show $0.00.
9. Click Save.

You can add or update an employee’s withholding elections in Gusto.

To enter W-4 information for an employee:

1. Sign in to your admin profile.
2. Go to People.
3. Find and click the employee’s profile.
4. Under Additional, click Taxes.
5. Scroll to the Federal or [State] section and click Edit.
6. Edit the details.
7. Click Save.

W-4 changes will take effect on the next payroll run.