Beginning in 2019, completing the updated Vermont version of the Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, the W-4VT, will be more important than ever due to the new federal and Vermont income tax laws. The Vermont Department of Taxes recommends taxpayers update their Vermont W-4VT.
The Form W-4VT was updated in January 2019, and even employees who recently updated their W-4s and W-4VTs should check to make sure that they used the most current forms to update withholding. Employers should make certain all new and existing employees complete the updated Form W-4VT.
"Because Vermont’s tax calculation has departed further from the federal calculation with the 2018 federal and Vermont reforms, relying on your existing withholding allowances could result in a mismatch between your 2019 withholdings and final liability,” said Tax Commissioner Kaj Samsom. “Simply relying on the federal W-4 allowances for Vermont withholding increases the risk of getting a surprise in the 2020 filing season, which could be a smaller refund, or even an amount due. I strongly encourage all taxpayers to complete the new Vermont W-4VT and submit it to their employers.”
The Vermont Form W-4VT, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, has been redesigned to help taxpayers pay the correct amount of state tax each paycheck so they may keep as much “take-home pay” as possible without owing anything to the State come filing season. “Updating these forms,” says Commissioner Samsom, “will help ensure the right amount of Vermont income tax is withheld and taxpayers don’t experience surprises at filing time.”
Form W-4VT is used by Vermont wage earners to direct their employers how much Vermont income tax to withhold from each check. It is a simple form that can be completed in less than 5 minutes. The W-4VT form is available for download and printing at tax.vermont.gov. Completed forms should be given to employers and not sent to the IRS or the department.