How much should go to taxes?

Question

I recieved a signing bonus of $2500. The IRS took $1015. I make roughly $52,000 a year, so why such a high tax bracket for this bonus check?

Answer 1

I do payroll for my company & we give out a fifth week of vacation money to those who have worked over 25 years but they won't let you take the time --just the money and it is considered as a bonus by the IRS & as such, it is taxed at a higher rater than regular pay. I do believe that the $1,015 they deducted will go towards your annual taxes owed so in the long run, they may have taken out too much, but it should work out at the end of the year.

Good Luck with your taxes. I'm a senior, a widow & now single (have a 2 family home that I use as a one family) so have very few deductions. I'm withdrawing pretax IRA money to live on & I'm now in the 25% tax bracket with hardly any deductions. I took a part-time job (bookkeeper/ payroll) and made $10,000 & had to pay $3,000 of the $10K to the IRS ( like one third). I don't think it's fair either.

Answer 2

Bonus checks usually have a flat percentage withheld by the employer and sent to the IRS. It's almost certainly more than you'll really owe, so you'll get the extra back when you file your tax return. Bonus money is taxed by the IRS just the same as your salary, not at a higher rate.