I claimed zero and still owe the government money how does this happen?

Answer 1

Did you have 2 jobs? The tax tables are geared so they take out a higher percentage the more you earn. If your earnings are split between 2 or more jobs, they don't factor in the higher income, and pull money out at a lower percentage rate.

Answer 2

This could happen for a number of reasons:
Error or mistake, you thought you claimed zero but didn't turn in the form, the HR person didn't process it or processed it wrong, you filed your taxes wrong, etc.
You work multiple jobs, especially multiple part-time jobs. Job 1 thinks you're going to make 10k for the year and so doesn't withhold a lot of taxes, Job 2 thinks the same thing. The way the tax structure is setup you pay more as a percentage the more you make.
You work a job with inconsistent hours. One week your HR department calculates the withholding for $100 and the next for $1000.
You receive other income that does not have taxes withheld. Such as self-employment, capital gains, withdraw from a retirement account.
That's about all that I can think of and I've assumed that if you are involved in complicated income situations that you would already know the answer or have asked your accountant.

Answer 3

When you claim zero, you're actually getting more of your own hard-earned money into your paycheck each pay period. So at tax time, you should either get a little back, break even or owe a slight amount. Technically speaking, this is the way to go because you are getting back more of your earned money each paycheck instead of the government sitting on it and collecting more from you. But if you're like most people that think it's better to get money back and that cannot save money to save their life, then next time you should claim 1. This way, you'll get a good amount back. Most people I know claim 1 because like I said, they just can't save on their own! Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Are you claiming both your deduction and your exemption?

Maybe you are missing something on your return. Who is preparing your return?

I had trouble with using some of the e-file options. Everytime I would use TurboTas or TaxAct they implied that I owed taxes to the IRS. In fact, when I did the paper form, I calculated at $1500 return.

I suggest you look at your form very carefully.

Answer 5

Perhaps you meant to claim exempt?

Claiming 0 will have the most taken out of your check. You'll get it back when you file for a refund, but you should claim the proper number.

They'll always take out SS and medicare.

Answer 6

Either company withheld incorrectly or you had outside income or you had 2 jobs. Multiple jobs throws of the withholding calculation. If none of those 3 - got me :)

Answer 7

I claim 11 and got back 5,000 with no earned income credit paid to me.

Answer 8

most likely your payroll department was not deducting enough in either state or federal taxes each week. talk to them about it. it happened to me too.