CA Withholding Tax Form - DE 4 Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate

Sep 19, 2026

Employee’s withholding allowance certificate for California personal income tax (PIT), used to calculate the amount of taxes withheld from wages. The form supports regular withholding allowances, estimated deductions allowances, and optional additional state tax to be withheld each pay period. It explains how California withholding interacts with the federal Form W-4, including risks of underwithholding, instructions for checking withholding, and rules for claiming exemption, including military-related conditions. Sign and date are required.

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Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate

Regular and estimated withholding allowances

Additional withholding amount (Worksheet C)

Exemption from withholding and certification

Signature, date, and employer details

Purpose and instructions for CA PIT withholding

This form can be used to manually compute your withholding allowances, or you can electronically [compute them at](compute them at www.taxes.ca.gov/de4.pdf)[ www.taxes.ca.gov/de4.pdf](compute them at www.taxes.ca.gov/de4.pdf). EMPLOYEE’S WITHHOLDING ALLOWANCE CERTIFICATE | Type or Print Your Full Name | Your Social Security Number | | --- | --- | | Home Address (Number and Street or Rural Route) | Filing Status Withholding Allowances
􀂆 SINGLE or MARRIED (with two or more incomes)
􀂆 MARRIED (one income)
􀂆 HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD | | City, State, and ZIP Code | | 1. Number of allowances for Regular Withholding Allowances, Worksheet A Number of allowances from the Estimated Deductions, Worksheet B Total Number of Allowances (A + B) when using the California Withholding Schedules for 2017 OR 2. Additional amount of state income tax to be withheld each pay period (if employer agrees), Worksheet C OR 3. I certify under penalty of perjury that I am not subject to California withholding. I meet the conditions set forth under the Service Member Civil Relief Act, as amended by the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act. (Check box here) 􀂆 Under the penalties of perjury, I certify that the number of withholding allowances claimed on this certificate does not exceed the number to which I am entitled or, if claiming exemption from withholding, that I am entitled to claim the exempt status. Signature Date | Employer’s Name and Address | California Employer Account Number | | --- | --- | ~~ ~~ cut here ~~ ~~Give the top portion of this page to your employer and keep the remainder for your records. YOUR CALIFORNIA PERSONAL INCOME TAX MAY BE UNDERWITHHELD IF YOU DO NOT FILE THIS DE 4 FORM. IF YOU RELY ON THE FEDERAL FORM W-4 FOR YOUR CALIFORNIA WITHHOLDING ALLOWANCES, YOUR CALIFORNIA STATE PERSONAL INCOME TAX MAY BE UNDERWITHHELD AND YOU MAYOWE MONEY ATTHE END OF THE YEAR. PURPOSE: This certificate, DE 4, is for California Personal Income Tax (PIT) withholding purposes only. The DE 4 is used to compute the amount of taxes to be withheld from your wages, by your employer, to accurately reflect your state tax withholding obligation. You should complete this form if either: (1) You claim a different marital status, number of regular allowances, or different additional dollar amount to be withheld for California PIT withholding than you claim for federal income tax withholding or, (2) You claim additional allowances for estimated deductions. THIS FORM WILL NOT CHANGE YOUR FEDERAL WITHHOLDING ALLOWANCES. The federal Form W-4 is applicable for California withholding purposes if you wish to claim the same marital status, number of regular allowances, and/or the same additional dollar amount to be withheld for state and federal purposes. However, federal tax brackets and withholding methods do not reflect state PIT withholding tables. If you rely on the number of withholding allowances you claim on your Form W-4 withholding allowance certificate for your state income tax withholding, you maybe significantly underwithheld. This is particularly true if your household income is derived from more than one source. CHECK YOUR WITHHOLDING: After your Form W-4 and/or DE 4 takes effect, compare the state income tax withheld with your estimated total annual tax. For state withholding, use the worksheets on this form. EXEMPTION FROM WITHHOLDING: If you wish to claim exempt, complete the federal Form W-4 . You may claim exempt from withholding California income tax if you did not owe any federal income tax last year and you do not expect to owe any federal income tax this year. The exemption is good for one year. If you continue to qualify for the exempt filing status, a new Form W-4 designating EXEMPT must be submitted by February 15 each year to continue your exemption. If you are not having federal income tax withheld this year but expect to have a tax liability next year, you are required t

FAQs

What is the purpose of the California DE 4 withholding certificate?

The DE 4 certificate is used to compute the amount of California personal income tax withheld from wages, reflecting the employee’s state withholding obligation.

How do regular and estimated deductions affect the number of allowances?

The form asks for the number of allowances for regular withholding (Worksheet A), allowances from estimated deductions (Worksheet B), and the total allowances (A + B) using the California withholding schedules for 2017.

When can an employee claim exemption from California withholding, and what documents may be needed?

An employee may claim exemption if they did not owe federal income tax last year and do not expect to owe any federal income tax this year; the exemption is valid for one year. For military-related exemption, checkbox Line 3 applies and proof may be required upon request.

Sep 19, 2026

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