Changing tax withholding information

Employees can make changes to their federal (W-4) and state and local (IT-2104) tax withholdings in Employee Self-Service (ESS). If employees make four or more updates to their tax withholdings within a calendar year, the Office of Payroll Administration (OPA) will be notified. The OPA, in turn, may send the employee's information to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or New York State for review.

ESS restrictions

Employees will not be allowed to exceed the federal cap of $42,000 in deductions or $20,000 for claiming dependents and state cap of 14 allowances in ESS. If employees are claiming more than 14 allowances on their IT-2104 form, they must see their HR representative.

Yonkers residents will not be able to use ESS to change their withholding information. They must contact their agency HR representative.

Employees cannot claim exempt from taxes in ESS. They must contact their agency HR representative.

Employees with locked withholdings (lock-ins) will not be able to change their information in ESS. The IRS or the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance require the employer to apply a given number of withholding allowances or a particular marital status for the employee subject to lock-ins. Employees with locked withholdings must contact their agency HR representative or the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) directly. An IRS toll free number and an address for the unit handling this program are provided in the "lock-in-letter" the employee received from HR at the time the action was taken.

To change your tax withholding information

1. From the ESS landing page, do the following:
   
   
   1. Click the Pay and Tax Information tile.
      The Pay and Tax Information page opens.
      
      
   2. Click the Pay and Tax Information button in the side menu.
      
      
   3. Click the Tax Withholdings link.
      
      
   Your current withholdings information appears.
   
   
2. Click the Change Withholdings Info button.
   
   The New Withholding Allowance Information fields appear.
   
   
3. Update all the fields you wish to change.
   
   Tip: For additional information on estimating your Withholdings visit the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator.
   
   

Federal

1. Tax Marital Status - Select your Tax Marital status
   
   
2. Click “Withhold at a higher rate” if you want to have the “higher rate” withheld
   
   
3. Claim Dependents - Enter the dollar amount to be withheld from your paycheck for dependents, if you are claiming dependents
   
   
4. Other Adjustments - Enter the dollar amounts you would like withheld from your paycheck for:
   
   
   1. W4 Other income amount (annual)
      
      
   2. W4 Other Deductions amount (annual)
      
      
   3. W4 Additional Amount withheld from each check
      
      

State/Local

1. Choose your Tax Marital status
   
   
2. Enter your State Withholding Allowances
   
   

Additional amount withheld from each paycheck

1. State - Enter the State Additional Withholding dollar amount to be withheld from each paycheck
   
   
2. Click your Local Additional Withholding Amount Status
   
   
3. Enter the Local Additional Withholding dollar amount to be withheld from each paycheck
   
   Tip: For additional information and instructions on completing W-4 and IT-204 forms, click the Additional Information and Instructions on completing W-4 and IT-204 link.
   
   
4. Click the Submit Changes button.
   
   A Confirm box appears containing your New Withholdings Information.
   
   
5. Review the New Withholding Information to ensure that all fields were entered correctly.
   
   
6. In the Withholding Allowances Terms and Conditions section, read the terms and conditions and check the Withholding Allowances Terms and Conditions checkbox.
   
   
7. In the Employee Authorization section, enter the last four digits of your Social Security number.
   
   
8. Click the Certify/Confirm button.
   
   A message appears on the page, informing you that the change should be processed by the next business day, and your document reference number.
   
   Note: Employees are encouraged to log back into ESS the next day to ensure that the pending change was processed successfully. You should keep your document reference number for your records.
   
   
9. For questions regarding your Tax Withholdings, contact your agency HR representative.
   
   
10. 10. For technical or functional issues, send an email to NYCAPS Central at EmployeeSupport@dcas.nyc.gov. Be sure to include a description of the issue and the error message, if applicable.
    
    

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Related topics
EForms
Viewing your tax withholding settings

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Last revised: December 23, 2019