Why do you not want a big tax return?
The simple reason you don't want a refund is that getting one means that you've just loaned the U.S. government your money — without making interest on the loan. It's not the smartest financial plan, especially if you're lugging around credit card debt, student loans or a negative balance of any kind.
Key Takeaways. Withholding taxes are deducted from your paycheck by your employer and include federal, state, local, and FICA taxes. Your withholding is excessive if you receive a large tax refund, which means you're paying too much in taxes with each paycheck.
What's so wrong with receiving a big tax refund? There's nothing erroneous or wrong about getting a large refund, but it probably means that you overpaid taxes during the year if you do. The IRS is just returning that overpayment to you without interest.
Getting more money with each paycheck may simply go toward funding existing needs and wants, rather than toward a 401(k) or savings account. And families that receive tax refunds tend to have lower incomes than those who owe the IRS — at about $50,000 versus $71,000, according to an analysis from JPMorgan Chase.
One of the big reasons for smaller payments this year is expiring pandemic relief, which was delivered via tax breaks for 2021 returns, experts say.
If you didn't account for each job across your W-4s, you may not have withheld enough, so your tax refund could be less than expected in 2022. Not factoring eligibility changes for tax credits and deductions: There may be other impacts on your refund due to the credits you can take.
In other words, when you get a large tax refund, this means you've overpaid taxes. Granted, the new W-4 is complicated and makes it difficult for most taxpayers to plan for paycheck-based IRS tax withholding. As a result, we at eFile.com have created tools to better plan, calculate, and create W-4 forms.
Advice from financial experts backs up what may sound counterintuitive: Smaller is usually better. Instead of a joyous windfall from Uncle Sam, a tax refund, they say, represents an interest-free loan that you've given the federal government.
It boils down to this: If you're getting a sizable refund just about every year and you're having federal taxes held out of your pay, you're probably having too much held out for federal taxes. So when you get a big refund, you're just getting your own money back.
Income: $75k-100k; Average Refund: $3,657. Income: $100k-200k; Average Refund: $4,704.
Is it better to underpay or overpay taxes?
Generally speaking, it's better to overpay your taxes rather than underpay. A tax overpayment will result in a refund at the end of the year, which means your taxes are paid in full, and you receive the difference as a refund.
Rank | State | Average refund |
---|---|---|
7 | Massachusetts | $4,119 |
8 | Nevada | $4,099 |
9 | Washington | $4,049 |
10 | California | $4,030 |
While inflation has been problematic during the last few years, the IRS adjusted some provisions to account for that economic pain. Accordingly, they've raised their tax brackets by 7.1%. For those whose income was outpaced by inflation, that could result in a return of as much as 10% more.
The amount of your tax refund depends on several factors including filing status, deductions and credits. Itemizing tax deductions and claiming lesser-known credits are among the ways to boost your refund. Tax deductible contributions can be made to traditional IRAs and health savings accounts up until tax day.
Tax year 2022—$2,753. Tax year 2021—$3,012. Tax year 2020—$2,865. Tax year 2019—$2,781.
The IRS warned back in November 2022 that "refunds may be smaller in 2023" for various reasons, including the lack of economic impact payments last year and the greater difficulty around deducting charitable contributions. The tax filing deadline fell on Apr.
What is the average tax return for a single person making $40,000? If you are a single person making $40,000 annually, you could expect a tax return of around $1,761 on average.
The IRS previously forecast that refund checks were likely to be lower in 2023 due to the expiration of pandemic-era federal payment programs, including stimulus checks and child-related tax and credit programs.
This is partly because you only get to claim the standard deduction once, regardless of the number of W-2s. If you're Married Filing Jointly, you'll see the standard deduction of $27,700 with the first W-2 you enter, but no further deduction after adding the second W-2.
Average tax return: The average tax refund in 2023 was $2,903. That's down 11% from 2022, when the average tax return was $3,263. When will I get my tax refund? Nine out of 10 tax refunds are issued in less than 21 days, according to the IRS.
Can I get a tax refund if I didn't work?
If you qualify for tax credits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit, you can receive a refund even if your tax is $0. To claim the credits, you have to file your 1040 and other tax forms.
If you make $60,000 a year living in the region of California, USA, you will be taxed $13,653. That means that your net pay will be $46,347 per year, or $3,862 per month.
To fatten your paycheck and receive a smaller refund, submit a new Form W-4 to your employer that more accurately reflects your tax situation and decreases your federal income tax withholding.
Keep in mind there's no limit to the size of a tax refund. You can even get a bigger tax refund than what you already paid in taxes.
You must claim the credit on the 2023 FTB 3514 form, California Earned Income Tax Credit, or if you e-file follow your software's instructions. Generally, you may claim CalEITC to receive a refund for up to four prior years prior by filing or amending your state income tax return.
References
- https://finance.yahoo.com/most-active
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazon-worth-more-apple-2030-101000089.html
- https://www.thestreet.com/memestocks/others/is-tesla-stock-justifiably-overvalued
- https://www.stash.com/learn/what-is-a-good-pe-ratio/
- https://money.com/small-tax-refunds-good-thing/
- https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/HRB/h-r-block/revenue
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/much-money-stock-market-75-180021414.html
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/aapl/forecast
- https://www.thestreet.com/apple/stock/apple-stock-at-500-per-share-could-it-happen
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/a-massive-problem-with-apple-stock-today
- https://www.tradingview.com/markets/stocks-usa/market-movers-active/
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/amzn/forecast
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/best-stocks-to-buy-now-with-1000
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/500-every-month-passive-income-130041730.html
- https://time.com/personal-finance/article/ways-to-invest-1k/
- https://www.fool.com/investing/how-to-invest/stocks/good-time-to-buy-stocks/
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/how-to-invest-dividend-stocks
- https://seekingalpha.com/article/4652634-how-to-live-off-dividends-forever
- https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/refund-drop-entered-second-w-2/L4wmMMBCs_US_en_US
- https://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/life/overpaid-tax-52790/
- https://www.gobankingrates.com/taxes/refunds/average-tax-refund/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/071715/risks-chasing-high-dividend-stocks.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/041015/what-are-common-advantages-investing-large-cap-stocks.asp
- https://www.forbes.com/advisor/in/investing/dividend-yield/
- https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/best-stocks-to-buy-now
- https://money.cnn.com/quote/forecast/forecast.html?symb=AAPL
- https://www.screener.in/screens/355766/highest-return-in-1-year/
- https://www.emeraldresources.com.au/
- https://www.cadwalader.com/ref-news-views/index.php?nid=68&eid=301
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/how-to-analyze-a-stocks-dividend
- https://www.forbes.com/advisor/investing/best-stocks-to-buy-now/
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/irs/tax-reform/lower-refund-expected/
- https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/tax-refund/fatten-your-paycheck-and-still-get-a-tax-refund/L5HaySdDP
- https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/irs-tax-return/can-i-file-an-income-tax-return-if-i-dont-have-any-income/L5T6d4PZP
- https://www.ig.com/en/trading-strategies/what-is-a-good-p-e-ratio--181207
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/dividends/articles/what-is-a-good-dividend-payout-ratio
- https://www.stockopedia.com/share-prices/emerald-resources-nl-ASX:EMR/
- https://www.5paisa.com/share-market-today/btst-stocks-for-the-day
- https://www.thebalancemoney.com/should-you-use-hr-block-or-another-accountant-3193049
- https://www.dividend.com/dividend-education/what-is-an-ideal-payout-ratio/
- https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/top-performing-stocks-2023
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tax-refund-debate-big-refund-zero-refund-cbs-news-explains/
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2024/01/30/best-magnificent-seven-stocks-buy-now-wall-street/
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/founders/
- https://www.forbes.com/uk/advisor/investing/what-is-dividend-yield/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colombian_emeralds
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-offices/extended-tax-services/tax-audit/audit-support/
- https://www.cnbc.com/select/average-tax-refund-2023/
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ways-to-get-bigger-tax-refund/
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/1-magnificent-seven-stock-that-could-help-set-you-up-for-life
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/best-performing-stocks
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/genius-ways-1-000-month-105500970.html
- https://www.upcounsel.com/preferred-dividends
- https://simplywall.st/stocks/us/diversified-financials/nyse-sq/block/future
- https://medium.com/crypto-and-money/7-proven-ways-to-make-5-000-9-000-per-month-in-passive-income-1aafbf025154
- https://www.fool.com/the-ascent/research/average-tax-refund/
- https://www.investors.com/news/best-stocks-2023-nvidia-stock-among-magnificent-seven-stocks-listed/
- https://www.reuters.com/markets/companies/HRB/
- https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/amzn-stock
- https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/hr-block-review
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/support/topic/software/software-tax-filing/before-filing-software-return/
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/tsla/forecast
- https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/26/heres-why-your-tax-refund-may-be-smaller-this-year.html
- https://capital.com/apple-stock-price-in-10-years
- https://www.thebalancemoney.com/why-big-tax-refunds-are-not-bad-4135481
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/around-block/financial-products/short-term-loan/
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/08/15/blocks-stock-is-valued-near-its-all-time-low-is-it/
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/12/12/is-apple-stock-a-buy-now/
- https://money.cnn.com/quote/shareholders/shareholders.html?symb=HRB&subView=institutional
- https://www.1040.com/tax-guide/taxes-and-your-job/adjust-your-withholding/
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/13-safe-stocks-invest-050937380.html
- https://www.indiainfoline.com/markets/hot-stocks
- https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/support/online/online-tax-filing/while-filing-online-return/start-return-over/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/072715/are-you-paying-too-much-taxes.asp
- https://www.efile.com/large-tax-refund-paycheck-calculator/
- https://www.ftb.ca.gov/file/personal/credits/california-earned-income-tax-credit.html
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/060116/4-ratios-evaluate-dividend-stocks.asp
- https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/tsla-stock
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/heres-why-hr-block-hrb-is-a-strong-value-stock-0
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/12-best-performing-growth-stocks-155908438.html
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/accounting/dividend-payout-ratio-formula/
- https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/10-best-companies-invest-now
- https://coinpriceforecast.com/apple
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/lawsuit-claims-hr-block-meta-google-used-spyware-to-illegally-share-consumers-financial-data-175419860.html
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/apple-stock-2024-prediction:-why-are-analysts-turning-bearish-on-aapl
- https://www.5paisa.com/share-market-today/stocks-to-buy-or-sell-today
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/h-r-block-shared-consumer-data-with-meta-elizabeth-warren/
- https://www.investing.com/equities/most-active-stocks
- https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/articles/how-to-get-the-biggest-tax-refund-this-year
- https://www.ml.com/articles/what-dividend-stocks-can-offer.html
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/target-corp-tgt-significantly-undervalued-163328240.html
- https://www.mstock.com/articles/10-best-shares-to-buy-today-for-long-term
- https://www.talent.com/tax-calculator/California-60000
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/mysz/forecast
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-growth-investors-buy-h-174506548.html
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/032415/which-investments-have-highest-historical-returns.asp
- https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/aapl-stock
- https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/LON/BSE/
- https://thecollegeinvestor.com/23970/hr-block-alternatives/
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/should-value-investors-buy-hr-block-hrb-stock-1
- https://www.aaii.com/journal/article/dividend-safety-signs-and-warning-flags
- https://www.amttraining.com/knowledgebank/accounting/what-is-dividend-coverage-ratio/
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/best-long-term-stocks-to-buy
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/hrb/forecast
- https://time.com/personal-finance/article/average-tax-refund/
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/valuation/dividend-coverage-ratio-formula/
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-stock-falls-15-as-analyst-kuo-says-iphone-shipments-could-drop-15-in-2024-171125703.html
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/12/14/where-will-apple-stock-be-in-5-years/
- https://www.kiplinger.com/investing/stocks/invested-1000-in-apple-stock-worth-how-much-now
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%26R_Block
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/qualifieddividend.asp
- https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/TGT/target/stock-price-history
- https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/why-is-my-tax-refund-so-low-2023-irs-rcna77922
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tax-refund-may-be-higher-this-year-how-to-get-it-early/
- https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/taxes/how-big-is-the-average-tax-refund-in-your-state/
- https://www.tradingview.com/markets/stocks-usa/market-movers-most-expensive/
- https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/hrb/analystestimates
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-stock-200-time-buy-101000436.html
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/heres-why-investors-should-buy-hr-block-hrb-stock-now
- https://www.koyfin.com/company/hrb/dividends/
- https://money.cnn.com/quote/forecast/forecast.html?symb=amzn
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2024/01/13/is-it-too-late-to-buy-apple-stock/
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/nvda/forecast
- https://www.fool.com/investing/2024/01/02/7-magnificent-stocks-can-double-your-money-in-2024/
- https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/gb:whr/forecast
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/stockdividend.asp
- https://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2013/05/average-tax-refunds.html
- https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/apple-we-advise-waiting-pullback-before-investing
- https://www.fool.com/investing/stock-market/types-of-stocks/growth-stocks/
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/apple-stock-price-prediction-for-2025:-will-it-still-be-the-worlds-largest-company
- https://www.screener.in/screens/797657/stock-doubling-every-3-years/
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-stock-down-36-as-barclays-says-iphone-weakness-will-persist-220019303.html
- https://companiesmarketcap.com/apple/pe-ratio/
- https://www.screener.in/screens/104735/consistently-growing-stocks/
- https://www.fool.com/investing/how-to-invest/how-to-invest-50k/