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HR & PayrollUpdated 2026-04-30

W-4

An IRS form that determines federal income tax withholding from an employee's wages, with state-specific equivalents required in most states.

In more detail

The W-4 captures the employee's filing status, dependents, and additional withholding preferences, which together drive how much federal income tax is withheld from each paycheck. The 2020 redesign removed the allowance-based calculation in favor of dollar amounts.

Most states require an additional state withholding form. The state form's design and required fields vary, which means a payroll provider must carry the per-state form library to onboard new hires correctly.

Where this shows up at Ceven

Ceven's onboarding workflow looks up the right state form based on the new hire's work address, presents it alongside the federal W-4, and writes both back to the payroll engine before the first pay run.

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