Incorrect withholdings, company was notified of their error

[davew128]

Its also painfully obvious your payroll person is an idiot.

 

[taxfrustration]

Its also painfully obvious your payroll person is an idiot.

This is true! But because she is an idiot it became MY responsibility. What you aren't getting is that the company told me they weren't doing anything, that I needed to fix it, so I did. I filed the non resident form with VA and an extension with WV and AFTER I did that I received the corrected W2. Which because I had already been talking with VA, knew they had the money, so all I did was follow up with them and that's how I found out that they STILL had the money that the information in the W2C was false.

I'm not sure what penalties you are talking about, that a company would have to pay for not remitting withholdings, because according to the state of WV they can't force an out of state company to remit taxes to them, so they would not penalize or do anything. When I received that information from them, was when I posted my question yesterday, because I could not believe that a business could get away with not remitting the withholdings.

 

[taxfrustration]

Let me make this clear to you, because you clearly aren't getting it. If the employer withholds money from you and tells you where it went or was supposed to go, your job is done. PERIOD. Once the employer withholds the money, its on THEM to remit it to the proper place. PERIOD. That's why the employer penalties for failure to pay are so harsh. Because it shouldn't BE the employees responsibility.

I started this thread asking this question: "How is this now my problem and how can there be no recourse to this company?". Your response was that there was essentially nothing that could be done and was just what it was. Why was the answer then that it was not my responsibility and that the employer would have to pay penalties for failure to pay?

 

[davew128]

This is true! But because she is an idiot it became MY responsibility. What you aren't getting is that the company told me they weren't doing anything, that I needed to fix it, so I did. I filed the non resident form with VA and an extension with WV and AFTER I did that I received the corrected W2. Which because I had already been talking with VA, knew they had the money, so all I did was follow up with them and that's how I found out that they STILL had the money that the information in the W2C was false.

I'm not sure what penalties you are talking about, that a company would have to pay for not remitting withholdings, because according to the state of WV they can't force an out of state company to remit taxes to them, so they would not penalize or do anything. When I received that information from them, was when I posted my question yesterday, because I could not believe that a business could get away with not remitting the withholdings.

Look part of the problem is that you're in WV, which, well, it's WV and the revenue authority workers are also in WV. We're not talking about highly educated people leading the bell curve on implementing tax law theory. Its a well established tax law principle that a business is subject to the laws of the state they do business in. What is one way to show they do business? Have an employee working in the state...

As for your penalty, if you file the return and use the corrected W-2, you should be fine. As for the employer, once the state realizes they are subject to WV jurisdiction regarding your wages, they have some splainin to do.

 

[taxfrustration]

Look part of the problem is that you're in WV, which, well, it's WV and the revenue authority workers are also in WV. We're not talking about highly educated people leading the bell curve on implementing tax law theory. Its a well established tax law principle that a business is subject to the laws of the state they do business in. What is one way to show they do business? Have an employee working in the state...

As for your penalty, if you file the return and use the corrected W-2, you should be fine. As for the employer, once the state realizes they are subject to WV jurisdiction regarding your wages, they have some splainin to do.

THANK YOU! That was what I thought should be the case, but was not the answer I got from the state of WV. I also have a small business and I contacted the lady I deal with when I pay unemployment to the state and she was VERY surprised by the answer I got from the tax department. She was going to get some other people involved. Agreed on the education level of some in this state, but not all. I just moved here 2 years ago, because my business takes me all over the DC metro area and is an easier commute for me to northern VA or MD...if you live in MD commute to northern VA is a nightmare and vice versa. Plus it's much cheaper cost of living in WV and it's peaceful, beautiful.

Only issue is the W2C does not have an employer ID number on it, but we are just going to file a paper return, because without that employer ID number I can not file electronically.

 

[cbg]

Its also painfully obvious your payroll person is an idiot.

That may be.

But I'd be willing to bet folding money that I know what payroll service the employer is using and if I am right, while the payroll person may have been an idiot the payroll service is compounding the problem. In fact, the payroll service may even be the one causing the problem since I have been through a similar situation with them and I had to fire them and hire a different service to fix it.

 

[LdiJ]

I used a CPA.....we filed a non resident form in VA and are STILL waiting to get those funds back. But in the meantime the company issued me a corrected W2 making it look like they paid the money to WV when they had in fact NOT.

Here is the info from the back of the Virginia W4 form, that clearly states what I said above, about being exempt from Virginia withholding.

If you are not subject to Virginia withholding, check the box on this line. You are not subject to
withholding if you meet any one of the conditions listed below. Form VA-4 must be filed with your
employer for each calendar year for which you claim exemption from Virginia withholding.
(a) You had no liability for Virginia income tax last year and you do not expect to have any liability for
this year.
(b) You expect your Virginia adjusted gross income to be less than $5,000 (single), $8,000 (married,
filing a joint or combined return) or $4,000 (married, filing a separate return).
(c) You live in Kentucky or the District of Columbia and commute on a daily basis to your place of
employment in Virginia.
(d) You are a domiciliary or legal resident of Maryland, Pennsylvania or West Virginia whose only
Virginia source income is from salaries and wages and such salaries and wages are subject to
income taxation by your state of domicile.
VA DEPT OF TAXATION
2601064 REV 6/93 (back)

If I pay my taxes myself to WV, how will I get in a bind? If I had paid them myself and this company had not caused all these issues, I would not be in the mess I am in now.

That means that you do not have to have withholding for VA. That does not mean that you are exempt from withholding for WV.

 

[taxfrustration]

That means that you do not have to have withholding for VA. That does not mean that you are exempt from withholding for WV.

I NEVER said I was exempt from WV withholding, in fact I said I would pay my WV taxes quarterly myself. What you are not getting here, is because now I commute into VA for work, the companies do not have to withhold WV taxes, so I have to pay them myself.

With the previous employer I worked in WV, so they should have been withholding WV taxes, but they did not, they remitted withholdings to VA, which was incorrect.

 

[taxfrustration]

That may be.

But I'd be willing to bet folding money that I know what payroll service the employer is using and if I am right, while the payroll person may have been an idiot the payroll service is compounding the problem. In fact, the payroll service may even be the one causing the problem since I have been through a similar situation with them and I had to fire them and hire a different service to fix it.

I've heard from the Comptroller's Office for MD and VA that there is a particular VERY LARGE payroll service company that causes huge problems, because they outsource everything over seas. HOWEVER I had a client I worked for that used the the same payroll service company, but their payroll processing person was on top of her game and knew what she was doing, so there were no issues and she stood her ground with the service company. So, that goes to show if the company payroll person wasn't so incompetent and lazy the issues wouldn't have been this great.

 

[davew128]

That means that you do not have to have withholding for VA. That does not mean that you are exempt from withholding for WV.

We all agree on that, the problem seems to be getting the employer to DO the withholding. That's not something an employee can easily rectify.

 

[LdiJ]

We all agree on that, the problem seems to be getting the employer to DO the withholding. That's not something an employee can easily rectify.

This sidebar started when he said that he was never going to allow ANY employer to withhold state taxes...and I told him that was not possible.

 

[taxfrustration]

This sidebar started when he said that he was never going to allow ANY employer to withhold state taxes...and I told him that was not possible.

He never said anything, SHE said I was not going to allow any employer, because I would not be employed with anyone within the state of WV. I deal with the Federal Government and either am employed directly as a Fed, who also has screwed up and withheld DC taxes on me when it should have been MD, so then I filed for exemption and they agreed, stopped withholding and I paid my state taxes myself. OR I have worked for companies in Northern VA, so based on that I can be exempt from withholding and pay my taxes myself. Unless the company is located in WV or has an office in WV or I work from home and my home office is seen as a branch of the company, the out of state companies that I commute to for work are not required to withhold WV taxes. SO, based on my situation alone, I can be exempt from ever having an out of state employer withhold state taxes.