What should I claim on my w-2 form to get the least amount of taxes taken out of my paycheck?

I am single with no children and currently have one job.

Actually, it is a W-4 that you fill out to reflect the tax amount on your W-2, but to answer your question, you can choose 7. If you chose 10 it will have the same effect as 7. OR, you can file "EXEMPT". Then no Fed taxes come out at all. It does not matter that you are single and have no dependents. It will all come down to the end of the year. Either you will get a return or you will owe. I usually file "EXEMPT" for 6 months out of the year, but I go long form as I have a ton of deductions for business. The IRS does not require you to account for the dependents you claim on your W-4.

First - I would check with the IRS to get the definitive answer. Look up the local office and call and ask.

Having said that, I THINK you can claim deductions as many as you want. However, if you have too little withheld, the IRS may penalize you if you owe them a large amount at the end of the year. The last time I changed my W-4, I remember the option of specifying how much extra I wanted withheld. If one deduction means you owe money, but two means you get a refund, you could specify 1 deduction plus some extra amount be withheld. That way you could tune your deductions to minimize overpaying or underpaying.

You can use the online W-4 calculator:
http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96196,00.html

If you don't have more deductions than the standard deduction alloted by the IRS, and you don't want to hand the government extra money, claim "1" on your W-4.
You may be in for a little surprise as I was once, where I owed $5 come tax time.
Better to have your money than give the government an interest-free loan.

1) The form is a W-4, not a W-2. A W-2 is what your employer sends you in February so you can do prepare your tax return.

2) To have no Federal taxes taken from your paycheck, you would write "Exempt" on your W-4. If you are not allowed to claim exempt, you will be in trouble with the IRS.

However, I am thinking that you may be very new to the whole tax thing. Are you aware that no matter what you put on your W-4, it will NOT change your tax liability? It will, however, have a profound effect on your weekly paycheck and on what you owe the IRS (or get refunded from the IRS) come April.

Here's an example. Let's say you rent a car for a year. The salesman says it will cost you $5,200 for the entire year.

1) You pay him $100 per week and at the end of the year, you'll have paid him the whole $5,200...nothing more, nothing less. When you return the car, you will neither owe nor get anything back.

2) You pay him $150 per week. When you return the car, you will have paid him $7,800 which is more than you had to. He will refund you the difference...$2,600.

3) You don't pay anything each week. At the end of the year, you'll owe him the whole $5,200.

The same holds true for taxes. The $5,200 (let's say for argumentâ€™s sake) is your tax liability. It is what you owed for the year. It is based on things such as your income / expenses / dependents but NOT your W-4. The amount you pay to the IRS each week (they call it your withholding) is similar to the $100 / $150 / $0 per week in the above example. It is what you will have taken out of each week's paycheck and given to the IRS to cover your tax liability. If you pay the correct amount (like in example 1), then when you do your tax return, you will neither get a refund nor owe any taxes. If you overwithhold (example 2), you will get a refund of the extra amount. If you underwithhold (example 3), you will not only owe the IRS the difference, but they could throw in some penalties and interest. Example 3 is what you were asking us to tell you how to do whether you realized it or not. If you follow that advice, you could potentially be in some hot water. Is this what you really want?

If you would rather be closer to number 1, and no one can claim you as a dependent, you don't have children, and you don't have any other tax write-offs, claim SINGLE 1 on your W-4. Use the little worksheet attached to the W-4 and see if you get the same answer. It couldn't be easier.

You should claim yourself and then that's all.

You should claim one exemption for every $2000 in deductions that you plan to have. By doing this, at the end of the year, you should either get a small refund or owe a little money.

Assuming you do not itemize your deductions, you can claim at least 4 exemptions.

you can only claim yourself unless you have children, then you can claim them

You don't much choice since you are your only dependent and you have to claim yourself. So only claim yourself.

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