Income and Investments Bonus Time: How Bonuses Are Taxed and Treated by the IRS Read the Article Open Share Drawer Share this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Written by asbbaines Published Nov 9, 2017 - [Updated Mar 30, 2024] 4 min read Bonuses are an excellent way to motivate employees and reward top performers. However, bonuses can also quickly change one’s tax return and the amount of taxes initially withheld depending on the payout. Are bonuses treated as regular income or singled out for special tax treatment? Are some types of bonuses more favorable than others? And are there any ways to minimize the tax impact of getting a bonus? These questions are explored below. Are bonuses considered “supplemental wages?” The IRS goes to great lengths to categorize different types of income and treat them differently, and bonuses are another example of this. In the eyes of the IRS, bonuses are typically categorized as “supplemental wages.” As a University of Minnesota summary explains: “The IRS defines supplemental wages as compensation paid in addition to the employee’s regular wages that includes, but is not limited to, severance or dismissal pay, vacation pay, back pay, bonuses, moving expenses, overtime, taxable fringe benefits, and commissions.” As such, bonuses (like other supplemental wages) are treated differently than ordinary wage or salary income when it comes to taxes withheld at payout. There are two ways of withholding taxes from your bonus: the percentage method and the aggregate method. Which method gets applied to your bonus? Let’s find out. The Percentage Method: The IRS specifies a flat “supplemental rate” of 25%, meaning that any supplemental wages (including bonuses) should be taxed in that amount. If you receive a $5,000 bonus, under this rule, $1,250 (25% of $5,000) goes straight to the IRS. Using this approach, the amount of your bonus, whatever it is, is “singled out” from the rest of your income and taxed directly. Employers frequently choose the percentage method because it’s easier to tax the entire bonus at a uniform rate. In most cases, this is ideal from your standpoint as the bonus receiver and taxpayer, too. The aggregate method (described below), in addition to being more time-consuming and laborious for employers, can take a bigger tax bite out of your bonus payments. The Aggregate Method: Unlike the much simpler percentage method, the aggregate method is used when your employer pays your bonus (say, $5,000) with your most recent regular paycheck. Then, they determine the normal withholding amount based on IRS withholding tables for the sum of both amounts, subtract what was already withheld from your last paycheck, and withhold the rest from the bonus amount. The problem with this approach is that instead of taxes being withheld at a flat 25%, and having that 25% rate applies only to the bonus amount, taxes are withheld at what is almost certainly a higher rate on the combined amount of your normal pay and the bonus. The result: a higher overall tax obligation initially for the same amount of income. Also, if your bonus puts you in a higher tax bracket this year, and you expect to make less next year, see if your employer can defer your bonus to lower your tax bill this year. What if my bonus exceeds $1 million? What about high-end corporate bonuses, like those exceeding $1 million or more? These are singled out for higher taxes. If you receive a bonus of more than $1 million, your employer must withhold 39.6% of the amount above $1 million, as well as the standard 25% of the amount below $1 million. In short, if you dislike the eye-popping bonuses top executives receive, you can take comfort in knowing how large a bite the IRS takes! No matter what method is used to withhold taxes from your bonus at payout, don’t panic. Remember, taxes may be withheld from your bonus at a higher tax rate at payout, but when you file your taxes at tax time your actual tax rate is based on your total taxable income and overall actual tax rate, which may be lower. Depending on your taxable income, actual tax rate, and eligible tax deductions and credits you may get some of the money withheld back in the form of a tax refund. Don’t worry about remembering all of this information come tax time, TurboTax will ask you simple questions about you and give you the tax deductions and credits you are eligible for. Are you lucky enough to get a bonus? Which tax method will your employer use? Previous Post 3 Tax Reasons for Why You Should Think Twice Before… Next Post Four Changes to Make This Year to Buy Your Dream… Written by asbbaines More from asbbaines 166 responses to “Bonus Time: How Bonuses Are Taxed and Treated by the IRS” Newer Comments » there is a difference between withholding and taxes…. just because it’s withheld, doesn’t mean you won’t get it back in a tax refund. HOWEVER….. I like to have my money when I earn it… I don’t need the IRS holding it for me, and earning interest on it, only to give it back later. Reply I am being laid off in two weeks with a severance agreement that will pay me a lump sum in April, 2015. Legal is telling me that because the agreement is being signed in this calendar year, the lump sum will be taxable in ’14. Does that make sense if the dollars are actually realized in 2015? Shouldn’t the severance dollars be taxed in 2015? Reply Ideally, tax should be on a cash basis and not accrual basis – and this should be reflected on the W4 which is used in the tax preparation. However, I am not well versed with the US tax laws. This article states that the aggregate taxation is a higher overall tax obligation, but it depends on the income amount for that job at the end of the year for tax purposes. For example: Aggregate…Aaron earns 50000 dollars in ty 2013 and the bonus, commission, etc. is 5000 dollars, and he is taxed at 13% tax bracket due to his withholding statement. Aaron paid 6500 in federal withholdings. Aaron’s income tax is 6910 per the IRS. Therefore if Aaron files as single no dependents and no deductions, Aaron will owe 410 dollars by April 15, 2014. However if Aaron is taxed at the bonus rate on the 5000, then he has paid 1250 for the bonus tax and 6500 for wage income. Aaron’s tax is 5660 per the IRS. The total paid is 7100 (1250 plus 5850 at 13% of 45000). Aaron will receive a refund of 1440. Reply TurboTax (joshrichie) please update the article to reflect “withholding” rather than taxes. When this kind of verbiage is thrown around the office it is very confusing. I can’t count the number of times I’ve explained this concept (yes, more taxes are withheld on bonus, but it all settles out at tax filing time – for most middle class folks, you are just paying one specific percentage of your “total” income on taxes – you are not “taxed” at different rates whether income or bonus). Reply My employer gives me a bonus around Christmas, of $3500. Up until now, I have received a 1099 at tax time for this. My accountant says this is wrong to do this. I am responsible for the taxes on this. Would it be better for me to insist they take taxes out before I get the bonus? Reply Linda, Your employer is required to withhold the taxes on bonuses if you are a non-exempt employee (subject to min wage, usually paid hourly or weekly). However, if you are an exempt or salaried employer then they can report it on the 1099 and make you responsible for paying the IRS 25% of your bonus at tax time Reply The author needs to understand the difference between “being taxed at 25%” and being subject to 25% withholding. There’s a BIG difference. What happens at payroll time is withholding. What happens when you file your tax return determines the actual tax that is paid. That bonus will be taxed at the same rate as your other income, with some adjustment for moving up the progressive scale. If you’re effective tax rate is 10% when you file your form 1040, the bonus was taxed at 10%, even though 25% of it was withheld. You get the 15% back in the form of a refund. Reply Agree strongly. A VERY POORLY written article. Pathetic, in fact. Reply Great comment, Roy. Question: I’ve had bonuses paid out in Jan and in April (today, actually). Federal w/h for the April bonus was 25%, standard; however, for the January bonus, there was only 4.78% in Federal w/h. Other than a mistake by my employer/Paychex, any logical explanation for why this occurred? W-4 has remain unchanged. Reply Yeah, this article falls in line with the rest of the verbiage you find with Turbotax, like ‘the money you deserve,’ and ‘the credits/deductions you deserve.’ It makes me want to barf every year when I see the language getting more and more geared towards ‘entitlement,’ never really acknowledging that most people will pay very little in taxes ( if any ), and a large percentage will actually receive a net gain because of their lower income levels and government handouts. Don’t get me wrong, I think the IRS is ridiculous and taxes the middle and upper class way too much, and in an overly complicated manner, but I hate how tax time has become ‘free money’ time for so many Americans these days…… Reply Rich are taxed way too much? You have to be joking.,, The tax rate that the rich pay is very very low compared to most industrialized countries. The rich need to pay more, and I’m talking people who earn over 500k a year. This article is so poorly written. Wages and Ordinary income are taxed the SAME. They are just “WITHHOLD” differently. Whoever wrote this has no idea what he/she is talking about, or at least word it very wrongly. Reply It made perfect sense to me. I understand the difference in withholding and taxing. Obviously the article is just to inform that bonuses should be withheld at 25%. The difference in tax brackets, if applicable would be based on the individual. and if they fall in a lower bracket, they will get a refund. But the employer is still responsible for withholding the 25% Reply That you understand is not the point. That they never mention the time sensitive aspect of withholding vs taxation, it’s like they are intentionally confusing the less informed reader to what is actually so common a knowledge as to be almost absurd. A two paragraph article could have done the trick and be more informative to all spectrum of employee. Is the total tax required to pay to the IRS the same regardless of method used? Either pay them now or pay them next year when you file? Reply Thanks for the nice article. I have a question, I received bonus $8400 but I got only $4500 out of it. They taxed $3900 on my bonus. Will I get this extra taxed amount at the end of the year or this is the way they calculate ? Reply How is it taxed? The federal withholdings should be 2100. You may have a higher than normal amount deducted for other withholdings. Look at your specific withholdings. Was it paid to you as self employment and you asked for the withholdings to come out. If so you paid the self employment rate for social security and medicare, which is higher than normal wage withholdings as you are paying your portion and your employer’s portion. Reply hi my job recently informed us of this taxation policy. they have chosen to treat this as supplemental income, but my question is “does this cover PTO pay also?”, i did not see it mentioned in the deffinition above. We also dont recieve vaction time just pto to cover any time away from work. Reply Does anyone know: What if I give my bonus to my mom? do I have to claim it as supplemental wage? does my mom have to claim it? Reply It was issued to you under your social, so who do you think pays the taxes? Reply My employer is withholding 8.09% Federal on my monthly bonuses. I have questioned this and they are telling they are in compliance according to their accountant. What should I do to avoid a tax liability at year end? Reply Hi Can anyone Tell Me what is the Period of Bonus Payment calculation. We are given Yearly Bonus in the first week of March. Additionally If I resign does the employer has the right to demand a refund of the bonus Amount. Also my employer held 39% tax. How do I proceed or request for refund…or does it has to be adjusted to next year… Reply I got a $3000 bonus last year and was paid $2740.50. seems like I was under taxed and now it looks like I owe over $400 in taxes even though I applied as single with 0 dependents. I’ve never paid this much before, does it seem right? Reply I’m getting the feeling that your situation is like mine – that the employer and payroll company didn’t withold tax off our bonus at all. I just inspected my pay stub closely, and while they deducted SS, Medicare and local payments, they deducted zero for federal and state taxes. Check your pay stub. Reply The IRS is taxation without representation. Reply Here’s a good one. Not a penny of our income taxes goes back into the economy. The IRS is a collection agency for the private central banks. Instead the money goes to the IRS which is actually a trust that has been set up in Puerto Rico and then it is returned to the central banks headquartered in London. The money is then borrowed back by our US government from the Federal Reserve at interest. The Federal Reserve is not Federal rather it is a consortium of the worlds largest banks. It is privately owned and for profit. Every penny of money that comes into our economy is debt period and while the private Federal Reserve issues our currency through debt they never print the interest. This guarantees the loans can never be repaid. Welcome to the real world. Reply It’s cute when people parrot concepts they don’t actually understand… Reply How’s this one. I’ll be getting laid off on July 1, 2014. I’ll be getting a half year’s severance pay. My employer says it will be taxed like a bonus. Hardly seems fair. Is there no way around that? Maybe I can adjust my w-4 for the next 4 months to try and counter it? The severance will still get hit the 25% but I’ll get more in my pay now. Thoughts? Reply I don’t think that is correct – that it will be taxed as a bonus? Never heard of that in all my years as an accountant and payroll. Ask them to show you where in the IRS guidelines it says that a severance is taxed as a bonus. Supplemental income(bonus and incentive pay) is but I don’t think a severance. Reply I was laid off and my severence check was taxed at the higher bonus/supplemental income. I didn’t think it was very fair either. There should be a difference classification for severence pay. I think the only way around it is if your company will pay your your severance broken out over the regular pay periods rather than a lump sum payment. The company I worked for would only do it if it was over a certain amount. Reply Please see above. Severance pay is included as supplemental income, therefore charged at a 25% tax rate. Reply I just received a bonus and it appears to be taxed at the 25% rate. Doesn’t some of that tax potentially come back when I do my 2014 tax return next year? I am under the impression that at the end of the year you file based on your income, deductions, etc. If the bonus payment had simply been applied to addtional money each pay check, it would be less percentage wise. So, isn’t the 25% overstated and you get some of that back after filing potentially? Reply Yes, you are correct. Reply Thanks for the clarification. hi, My employer applies the aggregate model with 40% tax withholding. Even on small bonuses of $1000 or less. Is that really affecting my tax return ? should I get some money back ? thank you Reply If there is an employee that is hourly and they do an up sale and get paid a commission is that part taxable? Reply Hi, Yes commission is taxable income. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply Thank you!!!! Hi Lisa, I received a bonus from my company, would it be wise to change my W-4 withholding to potentially get more back. My salary is less than $100k. Are employers required to withhold normal payroll taxes from an hourly employees pay check for a sales commission? Or is it optional? I would prefer that the commission be a part of my salary so all taxes will be withheld. They are paying the commission separately and not withholding taxes? Is this legal. Hi Lisa, I get paid a salary from my employer who is a furniture dealership. I work as a project manager and I handle purchasing among other things. We have a couple of furniture vendors who offer “spiffs” which are paid directly to me as an incentive for selling their products. How should the spiff payments be taxed? I am clearly not self employed and I do not have expenses to write off, but the IRS wants to charge self employment tax on this income. Is this correct? or should I be paying under a different category? Hi, If you were issued a 1099 for this income, then you are considered an independent contractor and you would have to pay self-employment tax on that income. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis I need help here if someone would answer me back. I just got bonus check from the company I work with. All taxes have been taken out accept the federal tax. I wondered why the federal government didn’t take out tax it frommy bonus check. I want to get fine when I fill my tax later. What can I do with this and where to go to get it fix before I file my tax this year? Reply If the amount of your bonus check was under a gross amount of $1000, they may not take the full 25% tax amount. At least that is what my company does. Do you have your personal tax withholdings set at a high exemption, because if so, that may be why no fed taxes were taken. Reply Thank you so much!!! I work in commission sales in the state of Washington. If we don’t make enough in sales to pass minimum wage ($1,400.00) we receive a draw check of $500 and a commission check of $780.00. We received a year end bonus last month. When i received my most current check i noticed that they had deducted what i received from my bonus check. I need to know if they are entitled to do so. If not who can i talk to about this. And should i cash that check? Came out to only $198.00. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Reply Remember that income tax withholding is really just an estimate of the taxes due – all accounts for the year are settled with the filing of the annual 1040. Other taxes like FICA are due on ordinary income, which is how the Code views bonus payments. Reply My employer deducted my entire christmas bonus. It was listed as an advance on my following paycheck. Will someone please explain how that works? Reply What about signing bonuses for professional athletes, since they are usually very big are they treated the same. Also us there any way they could tax defer or shelter the money? The reason I ask I have a friend who’s son is going to NFL. Reply If my bonus is subject to regular tax deductions, what about 401K, medical, etc.? Are these required to be taken out? Reply If I am the employer and I want to give a small bonus to my employees, must I use one of those 2 options? Can I just give them a separate bonus check and have it taxed the way a regular payroll check would be? Reply Are bonues subject to SS and MC withholding also? Reply Yes bonuses are subject to SS and MC withholding also. My bonuses are taxed at 38-39%. Reply The company I work for just handed out bonus checks for many of us in the amount of $300, yet we all received $168 with the rest withheld for taxes. Which taxing method is this? We are all curious why nearly 50% is being held. Reply If they were a separate check, then I would assume at the bonus rate of 25%. However, in the end when you file your taxes, the amount of bonus (that small) is income just like your other income. Reply Everyone commenting on this website should be absolutely outraged 25% of your “hard work” goes immediately to the IRS! Reply Welcome to.. civilization? Youve got that right!!! If you are receiving a bonus, most likely a whole lit more the 25% of your regular income is going to IRS. it is expensive to be successful Definitely, anon. I absolutely hate public roads, publicly funded hospitals, electricity in rural areas, clean water, help recovering from natural disasters, the department of defense, police, the fire department, and the Internet (which started with DARPA research funds btw). It’s outrageous that we have to pay for these things. I’m guessing the parent was being sarcastic =). Paying taxes is part of living in a society with a government. Don’t be outraged – be glad that you have police protection, a fire department, good roads to drive on. Being outraged at taxes is just stupid. Civilization =/ government – washington DC is the richest city in the nation and this is why. Public roads? Police? Fire? – these are all provided by the municipalities. The statists on this thread should have used drone bombings, international government palaces and GSA parties as a justification in order to be accurate. The state gets a cut. Medicade gets a cut. Social Security gets a cut. If you defer to a 401k out of your paycheck that factors in, too. My bonus was half gone when I got my hands on it too… Reply $168 is probably right. As the article indicated, 25% ($75) is withheld for the federal government. The other $57 was probably social security, medicare, and state tax. Reply Because they still take the “non TAXES” out like medicare, social security etc on top of the 25%. The 25% is solely federal income tax and also that doesn’t include if your state takes a chunk too… Best bet is to stuff it in a 401 tax deferred if you have the option. Reply Some companies give an HSA option as well to avoid this tax. I claim exempt on my temporary job. I receive a bonus for going over the production. I should have received a check for $107.00 But after it was taxed, I received only $67.00. How is this possible if I claim exempt? Please help Reply Social security and medicare could be part of it. Reply How are taxes taken out for occasional commissions? I get an average commission amount of $400 – $450 about 4 times per year, and federal & state taxes are never taken out, only social sec. and Medicare. The one time my commission was slightly over $1,000 is the only time that fed & state taxes were taken out. Our payroll person isn’t sure why this happens or what to do to ensure that fed & state taxes come out of my commission checks. Reply Carolyn, My company does not bonus tax gross amounts of anything under $1000, so that may be why you didn’t see fed or state taxes taken on those. SS & Medicare are not exempt from bonuses, so you’ll always see that taken. Reply Thank you for your reply. I had suspected that there was a $1,000 or so minimum bc once my bonus was slightly over that & it was the only time that fed & state taxes were taken out. Is there any way we can get our employers to take out the taxes on bonuses under $1,000? Usually if a bonus is under $1000 then fed and state taxes are taken based on your W4 form, i.e., how you’re filing and how many exemptions you’re claiming. If your W4 is set to a high amount of exemptions, you may not have fed taxes taken. That isn’t true in my case because I’ve been claiming zero for federal for several months. If you’re overly concerned, you could manually send 25% to the IRS as estimated taxes using 1040-ES You need to make it clear that the amount your employer is taking out is not how much you are being “taxed” on the bonus, but simply how much is being withheld. How much that bonus is taxed depends on your taxable income at the end of the FY. Reply This article is completely inaccurate. Hang on guys, don’t freak out. WITHHOLDING for bonuses is calculated using the above methods. It is not actually taxed using the above methods. When you file at the beginning of next year everything will be taxed as ordinary incomce. Reply Agreed–most articles about bonus income fail to point out this fact, which is ironically the main thing that most people are looking for. Reply I think that what most people are concerned about is that you cannot get around the 25% tax rate, unless your employer does the aggregate tax method, which can be worse… Reply Since the bonus is taxed at a higher rate than what your annual income tax bracket should be, do you get back the monies that were taken out because of the higher tax bracket the following years tax season? Reply TurboTaxLisa, What if we do a monthly bonus of $400.00? Do we have to do the 25%? Our bonuses are based on if they reach production. $100.00 for taxes does not seem fair for the employee. When we cut the bonus, we leave their regular tax rate in. Reply If I work in California, is there any state tax on Bonus or just the federal tax? Reply My dad’s tax accountant cannot understand why my husband’s bonus is taxed for Social Security & Medicare coming from the employer. He insists that if you are paid a bonus it should only be taxed for Federal Income, but not the other usual deductions applied to your payroll. Reply Your dad needs a new accountant! Reply is the bonus supposed to be taxed. I am just concerned. Every time my bonus is taxed while i am working on the public sector. how to calculate tax on your monthly income. Reply my employer gave me a 100.00 bonus with a separate check other than my payroll check and added it to my gross earnings and took out the taxes and then deducted it along with my medical and dental insurance and agreed,500.00 pay draw on the 15th of the month.Iget paid the last business day of the month. It seems like they gave me a bonus tthen took it back.confused in wa. state Reply agree time to change accountants Reply This is exactly what just happened to me , the company gave us a small bonus in a separate check bu ton by pay stubb it is shown as a pay advance and is deducted, so it looks like it was given to me as a bonus but them deducted from my check… Reply When you received the separate check, no tax had been calculated on it. So, it should be on your payroll check as an earning (so tax can be calculated on it). Then, it’s taken back out as a deduction because it was already paid to you on a separate check. Look on your payroll check stub or check with your payroll person to see if the bonus was included TWICE on your payroll check: (1) an earning (added to your check for tax calculations) AND (2) a deduction (removed from your check since you were already paid the bonus). I understand the flat 25% tax that is removed from a bonus, but should other taxes such as FICA, MEDI and others also be taken out? It feels like I am being double taxed, and that may be because I am. Thanks, MT Reply It is still income and should have all other taxes taken out. Bonuses are not exempt from other taxes. Reply as mentioned in one of the comments above, it is my understanding that regardless of which withholding method is used, at the end of the year bonuses are NOT taxed differently. they are added to income and the effective tax rate is a result of all income combined. for people in the 15% tax bracket their bonus will most likely be taxed at 15% or less. Reply Hi, Yes, your employer will deduct 25% federal withholding from your bonus when it is issued and then when you prepare your taxes the bonus will be added to your other income and all income will be taxed at your tax bracket. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply Hi Lisa, I receive my late father’s, Executive Continuance Salary. His former employer has now hired an outside company to do payroll. Now I’m no certain at all how this works, but they are telling me their company will now apply the 25% Supplemental Tax as that is the method they use for this type of income. It’s a fat $400. 🙁 Here is my ignorant question; will this mean that my tax return at the end of the tax year will me larger? Or is the Federal Government just getting a large chunk of my father’s hard earn money? I say ignorant in the literal sense. So please, people, don’t bash me. Hi Catherine, If the payroll company let you know they are taxing this income at 25% they will automatically deduct that amount. If you mean will your tax refund be larger this year, it will depend on your other income and deductions. The amount will go to you with the 25% already deducted, but the portion you receive will then be taxed at your tax rate, which is dependent on your total taxable income. I hope this helps you. Thank you, Lisa My apologies for all of the typos. I need to add that I have two siblings that these funds are equally distributed, and individually taxed. Thank you for your time. THe problem with this entire conversation is that you say “your employer” will tax you!! It is not th employer it is the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MANDATING THAT HE OR SHE TAKE IT OUT AS HOMAGE TO THE ALMIGHTY FED!!!! Reply Is there a penalty on the company if it does not withhold 25% of the supplemental wage (the “Bonus”)? What if the employee wants to skip Federal Withholding on the Bonus because he knows that he will satisfy some of the safe-harbor testing (will pay at least 110% of last year’s taxes, etc.) requirements? Reply if my bonus for 2012 is pd in 2013 which year does it get added to my gross pay? Reply My 2011 bonus was paid to me in 2012, and it was added to my gross pay for 2012. The pay check where you got the bonus will show a higher number for gross income because of the bonus, it’s added to the tax year for that pay check. Reply The check date determine the FY, thus, if the check was issued in 2013, then it would be report on your 2013 w2. Reply Ok so what if the bonus is issued as a separate check and im in the maritime industry. Dont know how much its for but its waiting at the office for me. This is unique bc my bi monthly paychecks are directly deposited into my bank account. I wont get back on shore or even be able to pick up the check until maybe the 28th of dec if even that early. My question is what is the relevant date that this bonus will be part of my taxable income and then if i wait to cash it until Jan would that prevent it from being part of my 2013 income? Ive only been employed for half of the year and even if the bonus is only for say $100 it will almost certainly but me in the 2nd tax bracket. This of course won’t be an issue next year since I will be in the higher bracket regardless of the bonus check amount, and would be more beneficial this year if I could wait to claim it next year. Please help. It is part of your taxable income based on the date the bonus pay is issued – not when you actually pick it up or cash it. I am not a tax expert, but I agree with Gilbert. Some companies do this intentionally, so you save on taxes until the following year. It’s called deferred compensation. Reply I agree with Clint. What I don’t understand is how can they take more taxes out my bonus than my regular pay, If the bonus is a gift why would you take it right back. Can’t win. Reply i dont understand why anybody would use the aggregate method if given a choice? Why would the government allow you to do the percentage method if they get less? What if your bonus is 1099ed? Reply It’s two witholding options, not tax options. They only get less until you do your taxes. After that both methods leave you with the same amount of money overall. Otherwise you’d be exactly right–why two options for paying tax? And why would your employer get to make the choice for you?? Reply The aggregate method is useful so that employees can defer a portion of their bonus to a taxed deferred retirement plan such as a 401k. If the bonus is in a separate check the employee may not be able to defer a portion to their retirement. This is the case with certain state employers. Reply My company didn’t allow me to change my withholding status on my bonus even though my payroll check reflected the change . Is this legal? Prior to this year the change always went through. None of the employees were allowed to to the change. I work for a Fortune 500 company with millions of employees . Reply I’m not sure why my comment was deleted, but I think it’s important to clarify that bonuses are only withheld differently, they are not actually taxed differently in the end. After doing your taxes for a given year, you end up paying the same amount in taxes regardless of whether you made $30k in bonuses + $30k salary, or just $60k salary. (Else why would employers have two “options” for how it’s taxed?) I welcome anyone to convince us otherwise. Reply Nevermind, my browser is broken. I only see half the posts on here until I actually post something :\ Reply Thank you for the great article, clarified exactly what I needed to know! Reply Good post. I learn something new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon every day. It will always be helpful to read through articles from other writers and practice a little something from other websites. Reply Two questions: What state should I claim performance bonus income in if I moved mid year, received the actual $ in my new residence, but was awarded the bonus for performance while working in the previous state. On the topic of moving, what state do I claim a relocation bonus? The state I moved from? or the state I moved to? Please provide a source. Reply Wonder if the bonus will come in on a 1099 instead of W2…it was issued as a separate check with separate (higher) withholding… Reply This is a really good, easy to understand article and explanation fo this issue! Thanks so much… Reply This article is all that Pastor J said, but it also includes a bit of unseemly blame-shifting. The higher withholding is not so much the employer’s choice as because the IRS will want much more in taxes when the return is filed. Reply Hi, Glad you liked the article and thank you for your feedback. 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there is a difference between withholding and taxes…. just because it’s withheld, doesn’t mean you won’t get it back in a tax refund. HOWEVER….. I like to have my money when I earn it… I don’t need the IRS holding it for me, and earning interest on it, only to give it back later. Reply
I am being laid off in two weeks with a severance agreement that will pay me a lump sum in April, 2015. Legal is telling me that because the agreement is being signed in this calendar year, the lump sum will be taxable in ’14. Does that make sense if the dollars are actually realized in 2015? Shouldn’t the severance dollars be taxed in 2015? Reply
Ideally, tax should be on a cash basis and not accrual basis – and this should be reflected on the W4 which is used in the tax preparation. However, I am not well versed with the US tax laws.
This article states that the aggregate taxation is a higher overall tax obligation, but it depends on the income amount for that job at the end of the year for tax purposes. For example: Aggregate…Aaron earns 50000 dollars in ty 2013 and the bonus, commission, etc. is 5000 dollars, and he is taxed at 13% tax bracket due to his withholding statement. Aaron paid 6500 in federal withholdings. Aaron’s income tax is 6910 per the IRS. Therefore if Aaron files as single no dependents and no deductions, Aaron will owe 410 dollars by April 15, 2014. However if Aaron is taxed at the bonus rate on the 5000, then he has paid 1250 for the bonus tax and 6500 for wage income. Aaron’s tax is 5660 per the IRS. The total paid is 7100 (1250 plus 5850 at 13% of 45000). Aaron will receive a refund of 1440. Reply
TurboTax (joshrichie) please update the article to reflect “withholding” rather than taxes. When this kind of verbiage is thrown around the office it is very confusing. I can’t count the number of times I’ve explained this concept (yes, more taxes are withheld on bonus, but it all settles out at tax filing time – for most middle class folks, you are just paying one specific percentage of your “total” income on taxes – you are not “taxed” at different rates whether income or bonus). Reply
My employer gives me a bonus around Christmas, of $3500. Up until now, I have received a 1099 at tax time for this. My accountant says this is wrong to do this. I am responsible for the taxes on this. Would it be better for me to insist they take taxes out before I get the bonus? Reply
Linda, Your employer is required to withhold the taxes on bonuses if you are a non-exempt employee (subject to min wage, usually paid hourly or weekly). However, if you are an exempt or salaried employer then they can report it on the 1099 and make you responsible for paying the IRS 25% of your bonus at tax time Reply
The author needs to understand the difference between “being taxed at 25%” and being subject to 25% withholding. There’s a BIG difference. What happens at payroll time is withholding. What happens when you file your tax return determines the actual tax that is paid. That bonus will be taxed at the same rate as your other income, with some adjustment for moving up the progressive scale. If you’re effective tax rate is 10% when you file your form 1040, the bonus was taxed at 10%, even though 25% of it was withheld. You get the 15% back in the form of a refund. Reply
Great comment, Roy. Question: I’ve had bonuses paid out in Jan and in April (today, actually). Federal w/h for the April bonus was 25%, standard; however, for the January bonus, there was only 4.78% in Federal w/h. Other than a mistake by my employer/Paychex, any logical explanation for why this occurred? W-4 has remain unchanged. Reply
Yeah, this article falls in line with the rest of the verbiage you find with Turbotax, like ‘the money you deserve,’ and ‘the credits/deductions you deserve.’ It makes me want to barf every year when I see the language getting more and more geared towards ‘entitlement,’ never really acknowledging that most people will pay very little in taxes ( if any ), and a large percentage will actually receive a net gain because of their lower income levels and government handouts. Don’t get me wrong, I think the IRS is ridiculous and taxes the middle and upper class way too much, and in an overly complicated manner, but I hate how tax time has become ‘free money’ time for so many Americans these days…… Reply
Rich are taxed way too much? You have to be joking.,, The tax rate that the rich pay is very very low compared to most industrialized countries. The rich need to pay more, and I’m talking people who earn over 500k a year.
This article is so poorly written. Wages and Ordinary income are taxed the SAME. They are just “WITHHOLD” differently. Whoever wrote this has no idea what he/she is talking about, or at least word it very wrongly. Reply
It made perfect sense to me. I understand the difference in withholding and taxing. Obviously the article is just to inform that bonuses should be withheld at 25%. The difference in tax brackets, if applicable would be based on the individual. and if they fall in a lower bracket, they will get a refund. But the employer is still responsible for withholding the 25% Reply
That you understand is not the point. That they never mention the time sensitive aspect of withholding vs taxation, it’s like they are intentionally confusing the less informed reader to what is actually so common a knowledge as to be almost absurd. A two paragraph article could have done the trick and be more informative to all spectrum of employee.
Is the total tax required to pay to the IRS the same regardless of method used? Either pay them now or pay them next year when you file? Reply
Thanks for the nice article. I have a question, I received bonus $8400 but I got only $4500 out of it. They taxed $3900 on my bonus. Will I get this extra taxed amount at the end of the year or this is the way they calculate ? Reply
How is it taxed? The federal withholdings should be 2100. You may have a higher than normal amount deducted for other withholdings. Look at your specific withholdings. Was it paid to you as self employment and you asked for the withholdings to come out. If so you paid the self employment rate for social security and medicare, which is higher than normal wage withholdings as you are paying your portion and your employer’s portion. Reply
hi my job recently informed us of this taxation policy. they have chosen to treat this as supplemental income, but my question is “does this cover PTO pay also?”, i did not see it mentioned in the deffinition above. We also dont recieve vaction time just pto to cover any time away from work. Reply
Does anyone know: What if I give my bonus to my mom? do I have to claim it as supplemental wage? does my mom have to claim it? Reply
My employer is withholding 8.09% Federal on my monthly bonuses. I have questioned this and they are telling they are in compliance according to their accountant. What should I do to avoid a tax liability at year end? Reply
Hi Can anyone Tell Me what is the Period of Bonus Payment calculation. We are given Yearly Bonus in the first week of March. Additionally If I resign does the employer has the right to demand a refund of the bonus Amount. Also my employer held 39% tax. How do I proceed or request for refund…or does it has to be adjusted to next year… Reply
I got a $3000 bonus last year and was paid $2740.50. seems like I was under taxed and now it looks like I owe over $400 in taxes even though I applied as single with 0 dependents. I’ve never paid this much before, does it seem right? Reply
I’m getting the feeling that your situation is like mine – that the employer and payroll company didn’t withold tax off our bonus at all. I just inspected my pay stub closely, and while they deducted SS, Medicare and local payments, they deducted zero for federal and state taxes. Check your pay stub. Reply
Here’s a good one. Not a penny of our income taxes goes back into the economy. The IRS is a collection agency for the private central banks. Instead the money goes to the IRS which is actually a trust that has been set up in Puerto Rico and then it is returned to the central banks headquartered in London. The money is then borrowed back by our US government from the Federal Reserve at interest. The Federal Reserve is not Federal rather it is a consortium of the worlds largest banks. It is privately owned and for profit. Every penny of money that comes into our economy is debt period and while the private Federal Reserve issues our currency through debt they never print the interest. This guarantees the loans can never be repaid. Welcome to the real world. Reply
How’s this one. I’ll be getting laid off on July 1, 2014. I’ll be getting a half year’s severance pay. My employer says it will be taxed like a bonus. Hardly seems fair. Is there no way around that? Maybe I can adjust my w-4 for the next 4 months to try and counter it? The severance will still get hit the 25% but I’ll get more in my pay now. Thoughts? Reply
I don’t think that is correct – that it will be taxed as a bonus? Never heard of that in all my years as an accountant and payroll. Ask them to show you where in the IRS guidelines it says that a severance is taxed as a bonus. Supplemental income(bonus and incentive pay) is but I don’t think a severance. Reply
I was laid off and my severence check was taxed at the higher bonus/supplemental income. I didn’t think it was very fair either. There should be a difference classification for severence pay. I think the only way around it is if your company will pay your your severance broken out over the regular pay periods rather than a lump sum payment. The company I worked for would only do it if it was over a certain amount. Reply
Please see above. Severance pay is included as supplemental income, therefore charged at a 25% tax rate. Reply
I just received a bonus and it appears to be taxed at the 25% rate. Doesn’t some of that tax potentially come back when I do my 2014 tax return next year? I am under the impression that at the end of the year you file based on your income, deductions, etc. If the bonus payment had simply been applied to addtional money each pay check, it would be less percentage wise. So, isn’t the 25% overstated and you get some of that back after filing potentially? Reply
hi, My employer applies the aggregate model with 40% tax withholding. Even on small bonuses of $1000 or less. Is that really affecting my tax return ? should I get some money back ? thank you Reply
If there is an employee that is hourly and they do an up sale and get paid a commission is that part taxable? Reply
Hi Lisa, I received a bonus from my company, would it be wise to change my W-4 withholding to potentially get more back. My salary is less than $100k.
Are employers required to withhold normal payroll taxes from an hourly employees pay check for a sales commission? Or is it optional? I would prefer that the commission be a part of my salary so all taxes will be withheld. They are paying the commission separately and not withholding taxes? Is this legal.
Hi Lisa, I get paid a salary from my employer who is a furniture dealership. I work as a project manager and I handle purchasing among other things. We have a couple of furniture vendors who offer “spiffs” which are paid directly to me as an incentive for selling their products. How should the spiff payments be taxed? I am clearly not self employed and I do not have expenses to write off, but the IRS wants to charge self employment tax on this income. Is this correct? or should I be paying under a different category?
Hi, If you were issued a 1099 for this income, then you are considered an independent contractor and you would have to pay self-employment tax on that income. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis
I need help here if someone would answer me back. I just got bonus check from the company I work with. All taxes have been taken out accept the federal tax. I wondered why the federal government didn’t take out tax it frommy bonus check. I want to get fine when I fill my tax later. What can I do with this and where to go to get it fix before I file my tax this year? Reply
If the amount of your bonus check was under a gross amount of $1000, they may not take the full 25% tax amount. At least that is what my company does. Do you have your personal tax withholdings set at a high exemption, because if so, that may be why no fed taxes were taken. Reply
I work in commission sales in the state of Washington. If we don’t make enough in sales to pass minimum wage ($1,400.00) we receive a draw check of $500 and a commission check of $780.00. We received a year end bonus last month. When i received my most current check i noticed that they had deducted what i received from my bonus check. I need to know if they are entitled to do so. If not who can i talk to about this. And should i cash that check? Came out to only $198.00. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Reply
Remember that income tax withholding is really just an estimate of the taxes due – all accounts for the year are settled with the filing of the annual 1040. Other taxes like FICA are due on ordinary income, which is how the Code views bonus payments. Reply
My employer deducted my entire christmas bonus. It was listed as an advance on my following paycheck. Will someone please explain how that works? Reply
What about signing bonuses for professional athletes, since they are usually very big are they treated the same. Also us there any way they could tax defer or shelter the money? The reason I ask I have a friend who’s son is going to NFL. Reply
If my bonus is subject to regular tax deductions, what about 401K, medical, etc.? Are these required to be taken out? Reply
If I am the employer and I want to give a small bonus to my employees, must I use one of those 2 options? Can I just give them a separate bonus check and have it taxed the way a regular payroll check would be? Reply
The company I work for just handed out bonus checks for many of us in the amount of $300, yet we all received $168 with the rest withheld for taxes. Which taxing method is this? We are all curious why nearly 50% is being held. Reply
If they were a separate check, then I would assume at the bonus rate of 25%. However, in the end when you file your taxes, the amount of bonus (that small) is income just like your other income. Reply
Everyone commenting on this website should be absolutely outraged 25% of your “hard work” goes immediately to the IRS! Reply
If you are receiving a bonus, most likely a whole lit more the 25% of your regular income is going to IRS. it is expensive to be successful
Definitely, anon. I absolutely hate public roads, publicly funded hospitals, electricity in rural areas, clean water, help recovering from natural disasters, the department of defense, police, the fire department, and the Internet (which started with DARPA research funds btw). It’s outrageous that we have to pay for these things. I’m guessing the parent was being sarcastic =).
Paying taxes is part of living in a society with a government. Don’t be outraged – be glad that you have police protection, a fire department, good roads to drive on. Being outraged at taxes is just stupid.
Civilization =/ government – washington DC is the richest city in the nation and this is why. Public roads? Police? Fire? – these are all provided by the municipalities. The statists on this thread should have used drone bombings, international government palaces and GSA parties as a justification in order to be accurate.
The state gets a cut. Medicade gets a cut. Social Security gets a cut. If you defer to a 401k out of your paycheck that factors in, too. My bonus was half gone when I got my hands on it too… Reply
$168 is probably right. As the article indicated, 25% ($75) is withheld for the federal government. The other $57 was probably social security, medicare, and state tax. Reply
Because they still take the “non TAXES” out like medicare, social security etc on top of the 25%. The 25% is solely federal income tax and also that doesn’t include if your state takes a chunk too… Best bet is to stuff it in a 401 tax deferred if you have the option. Reply
I claim exempt on my temporary job. I receive a bonus for going over the production. I should have received a check for $107.00 But after it was taxed, I received only $67.00. How is this possible if I claim exempt? Please help Reply
How are taxes taken out for occasional commissions? I get an average commission amount of $400 – $450 about 4 times per year, and federal & state taxes are never taken out, only social sec. and Medicare. The one time my commission was slightly over $1,000 is the only time that fed & state taxes were taken out. Our payroll person isn’t sure why this happens or what to do to ensure that fed & state taxes come out of my commission checks. Reply
Carolyn, My company does not bonus tax gross amounts of anything under $1000, so that may be why you didn’t see fed or state taxes taken on those. SS & Medicare are not exempt from bonuses, so you’ll always see that taken. Reply
Thank you for your reply. I had suspected that there was a $1,000 or so minimum bc once my bonus was slightly over that & it was the only time that fed & state taxes were taken out. Is there any way we can get our employers to take out the taxes on bonuses under $1,000?
Usually if a bonus is under $1000 then fed and state taxes are taken based on your W4 form, i.e., how you’re filing and how many exemptions you’re claiming. If your W4 is set to a high amount of exemptions, you may not have fed taxes taken.
You need to make it clear that the amount your employer is taking out is not how much you are being “taxed” on the bonus, but simply how much is being withheld. How much that bonus is taxed depends on your taxable income at the end of the FY. Reply
This article is completely inaccurate. Hang on guys, don’t freak out. WITHHOLDING for bonuses is calculated using the above methods. It is not actually taxed using the above methods. When you file at the beginning of next year everything will be taxed as ordinary incomce. Reply
Agreed–most articles about bonus income fail to point out this fact, which is ironically the main thing that most people are looking for. Reply
I think that what most people are concerned about is that you cannot get around the 25% tax rate, unless your employer does the aggregate tax method, which can be worse… Reply
Since the bonus is taxed at a higher rate than what your annual income tax bracket should be, do you get back the monies that were taken out because of the higher tax bracket the following years tax season? Reply
TurboTaxLisa, What if we do a monthly bonus of $400.00? Do we have to do the 25%? Our bonuses are based on if they reach production. $100.00 for taxes does not seem fair for the employee. When we cut the bonus, we leave their regular tax rate in. Reply
My dad’s tax accountant cannot understand why my husband’s bonus is taxed for Social Security & Medicare coming from the employer. He insists that if you are paid a bonus it should only be taxed for Federal Income, but not the other usual deductions applied to your payroll. Reply
is the bonus supposed to be taxed. I am just concerned. Every time my bonus is taxed while i am working on the public sector. how to calculate tax on your monthly income. Reply
my employer gave me a 100.00 bonus with a separate check other than my payroll check and added it to my gross earnings and took out the taxes and then deducted it along with my medical and dental insurance and agreed,500.00 pay draw on the 15th of the month.Iget paid the last business day of the month. It seems like they gave me a bonus tthen took it back.confused in wa. state Reply
This is exactly what just happened to me , the company gave us a small bonus in a separate check bu ton by pay stubb it is shown as a pay advance and is deducted, so it looks like it was given to me as a bonus but them deducted from my check… Reply
When you received the separate check, no tax had been calculated on it. So, it should be on your payroll check as an earning (so tax can be calculated on it). Then, it’s taken back out as a deduction because it was already paid to you on a separate check. Look on your payroll check stub or check with your payroll person to see if the bonus was included TWICE on your payroll check: (1) an earning (added to your check for tax calculations) AND (2) a deduction (removed from your check since you were already paid the bonus).
I understand the flat 25% tax that is removed from a bonus, but should other taxes such as FICA, MEDI and others also be taken out? It feels like I am being double taxed, and that may be because I am. Thanks, MT Reply
It is still income and should have all other taxes taken out. Bonuses are not exempt from other taxes. Reply
as mentioned in one of the comments above, it is my understanding that regardless of which withholding method is used, at the end of the year bonuses are NOT taxed differently. they are added to income and the effective tax rate is a result of all income combined. for people in the 15% tax bracket their bonus will most likely be taxed at 15% or less. Reply
Hi, Yes, your employer will deduct 25% federal withholding from your bonus when it is issued and then when you prepare your taxes the bonus will be added to your other income and all income will be taxed at your tax bracket. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply
Hi Lisa, I receive my late father’s, Executive Continuance Salary. His former employer has now hired an outside company to do payroll. Now I’m no certain at all how this works, but they are telling me their company will now apply the 25% Supplemental Tax as that is the method they use for this type of income. It’s a fat $400. 🙁 Here is my ignorant question; will this mean that my tax return at the end of the tax year will me larger? Or is the Federal Government just getting a large chunk of my father’s hard earn money? I say ignorant in the literal sense. So please, people, don’t bash me.
Hi Catherine, If the payroll company let you know they are taxing this income at 25% they will automatically deduct that amount. If you mean will your tax refund be larger this year, it will depend on your other income and deductions. The amount will go to you with the 25% already deducted, but the portion you receive will then be taxed at your tax rate, which is dependent on your total taxable income. I hope this helps you. Thank you, Lisa
My apologies for all of the typos. I need to add that I have two siblings that these funds are equally distributed, and individually taxed. Thank you for your time.
THe problem with this entire conversation is that you say “your employer” will tax you!! It is not th employer it is the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MANDATING THAT HE OR SHE TAKE IT OUT AS HOMAGE TO THE ALMIGHTY FED!!!! Reply
Is there a penalty on the company if it does not withhold 25% of the supplemental wage (the “Bonus”)? What if the employee wants to skip Federal Withholding on the Bonus because he knows that he will satisfy some of the safe-harbor testing (will pay at least 110% of last year’s taxes, etc.) requirements? Reply
My 2011 bonus was paid to me in 2012, and it was added to my gross pay for 2012. The pay check where you got the bonus will show a higher number for gross income because of the bonus, it’s added to the tax year for that pay check. Reply
The check date determine the FY, thus, if the check was issued in 2013, then it would be report on your 2013 w2. Reply
Ok so what if the bonus is issued as a separate check and im in the maritime industry. Dont know how much its for but its waiting at the office for me. This is unique bc my bi monthly paychecks are directly deposited into my bank account. I wont get back on shore or even be able to pick up the check until maybe the 28th of dec if even that early. My question is what is the relevant date that this bonus will be part of my taxable income and then if i wait to cash it until Jan would that prevent it from being part of my 2013 income? Ive only been employed for half of the year and even if the bonus is only for say $100 it will almost certainly but me in the 2nd tax bracket. This of course won’t be an issue next year since I will be in the higher bracket regardless of the bonus check amount, and would be more beneficial this year if I could wait to claim it next year. Please help.
It is part of your taxable income based on the date the bonus pay is issued – not when you actually pick it up or cash it.
I am not a tax expert, but I agree with Gilbert. Some companies do this intentionally, so you save on taxes until the following year. It’s called deferred compensation. Reply
I agree with Clint. What I don’t understand is how can they take more taxes out my bonus than my regular pay, If the bonus is a gift why would you take it right back. Can’t win. Reply
i dont understand why anybody would use the aggregate method if given a choice? Why would the government allow you to do the percentage method if they get less? What if your bonus is 1099ed? Reply
It’s two witholding options, not tax options. They only get less until you do your taxes. After that both methods leave you with the same amount of money overall. Otherwise you’d be exactly right–why two options for paying tax? And why would your employer get to make the choice for you?? Reply
The aggregate method is useful so that employees can defer a portion of their bonus to a taxed deferred retirement plan such as a 401k. If the bonus is in a separate check the employee may not be able to defer a portion to their retirement. This is the case with certain state employers. Reply
My company didn’t allow me to change my withholding status on my bonus even though my payroll check reflected the change . Is this legal? Prior to this year the change always went through. None of the employees were allowed to to the change. I work for a Fortune 500 company with millions of employees . Reply
I’m not sure why my comment was deleted, but I think it’s important to clarify that bonuses are only withheld differently, they are not actually taxed differently in the end. After doing your taxes for a given year, you end up paying the same amount in taxes regardless of whether you made $30k in bonuses + $30k salary, or just $60k salary. (Else why would employers have two “options” for how it’s taxed?) I welcome anyone to convince us otherwise. Reply
Nevermind, my browser is broken. I only see half the posts on here until I actually post something :\ Reply
Good post. I learn something new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon every day. It will always be helpful to read through articles from other writers and practice a little something from other websites. Reply
Two questions: What state should I claim performance bonus income in if I moved mid year, received the actual $ in my new residence, but was awarded the bonus for performance while working in the previous state. On the topic of moving, what state do I claim a relocation bonus? The state I moved from? or the state I moved to? Please provide a source. Reply
Wonder if the bonus will come in on a 1099 instead of W2…it was issued as a separate check with separate (higher) withholding… Reply
This is a really good, easy to understand article and explanation fo this issue! Thanks so much… Reply
This article is all that Pastor J said, but it also includes a bit of unseemly blame-shifting. The higher withholding is not so much the employer’s choice as because the IRS will want much more in taxes when the return is filed. Reply