W-4 Withholding Protection Package

Legally STOP the withholding of federal income tax from your paycheck.

This package contains the instructions and documents necessary to correct your withholding status to "Exempt." This process uses a "Statement of Good Faith" to establish a protected business record while ensuring your employer processes the W-4 form without any problems.

🛑 STOP: READ THESE WARNINGS FIRST

1. PREREQUISITE: You Must Petition Congress First

Do not use this package unless you have already mailed your Petition to Congress (Step 5), Petition #1 on Individual Income Taxes.
  • Why? Your legal defense relies on the argument that you have formally asked Congress to clarify the law and are waiting for an answer. If you use this W-4 package without having mailed the Petition, you are making a false statement on the Addendum.
  • [Link: Go to Step 5 to Prepare Your Petition]

2. WARNING:
The "Lock-In Letter" Risk

Claiming"Exempt" is your legal right, but it may trigger the IRS to send a Letter 2800C ("Lock-In Letter") to your employer. This intimidation letter threatens your employer to disregard your W-4 and withhold tax at the maximum rate (Single/Zero).
  • If this happens, your employer will almost certainly do as the IRS asks your employer. FLS has a separate procedure for challenging Lock-In Letters, which is not foolproof, but you must understand this risk exists.

3. FICA NOTICE
(Social Security & Medicare)

This W-4 package stops Federal Income Tax withholding (Subtitle A). It does NOT stop Social Security or Medicare (FICA) taxes. Your employer will continue to deduct FICA taxes regardless of your W-4 status. (Unless you can persuade them why they are not legally required to take FICA out of your paycheck and maybe even join the Restore Freedom Plan and the Employer Freedom Plan.)

INSTRUCTIONS: CHOOSE YOUR METHOD

OPTION A:
PAPER FORM SUBMISSION (Recommended)

Does your employer accept a paper form, or require you to use an online portal (like ADP, Workday, or Paychex)?

Step 1: Download & Print

Step 2: Prepare the Documents

  1. Fill out your name, address, and SSN on the W-4. Under Step 4(c), check the "Exempt from withholding" checkbox.
  2. CRITICAL: In Step 5 (Signature), sign your name and hand-write “See attached” immediately next to your signature.
  3. Print the Addendum.
  4. Staple the Addendum behind the signed W-4.

Step 3: Submit

  • Why this works: This protects you and shows your good intent.

OPTION B:
ONLINE PORTAL SUBMISSION

Use this method ONLY if you are forced to use a website or app.

Step 1: The Digital Action

Login to your company payroll portal. Select "Exempt" status and submit the change.

Step 2: The "Perfecting the Record" Letter

Because the online portal does not allow you to attach the required legal Addendum, you must immediately mail a physical notice to your company to protect yourself.
"Notice of Reliance" Cover Letter
Download Official IRS Form W-4
Download FLS Addendum

Step 3: Prepare the Mail Packet

  1. Fill out the Cover Letter.
  2. Prepare a paper W-4 (Marked Exempt, Signed with the Asterisk) and staple the Addendum to it.
  3. Staple the W-4 packet to the Cover Letter.

Step 4: Mail Immediately

Mail this packet to your Employer’s Payroll/HR Department via Certified Mail.
  • Why? This creates a "Legal Bridge." It proves that your digital click was "conditional" based on the legal arguments in the Addendum.
  • Proof: Keep a copy of the letter and staple your Certified Mail receipt to it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to give the Petition to my employer?
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No. The Addendum states that the Petition is "Available Upon Request." You do not need to provide the full 39-page file unless they ask for it.
What if my employer rejects the form?
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If your employer refuses to process the paper form (Option A), simply switch to Option B. Submit a clean/electronic form to get the withholding stopped, but immediately mail the "Legal Bridge" letter to HR to establish your legal defense.
  1. A statement that the form is signed “under duress”, involuntarily, since you are being forced to fill it out to get the job or get paid;
  2. An explanation about who the explicit language of federal tax laws say is an “employee” subject to Income Tax Withholding, and that you are not such an "employee";
  3. A statement that this form is a legal Release of Employer Liability for your employer when they stop withholding federal income taxes from your pay;
  4. Attachments with the IRS instructions on how to claim Exempt from withholding;
  5. Copies of the specific Internal Revenue Code paragraphs referred to; and
  6. Three U.S. Supreme Court decisions verifying that your withholding exemption claim is lawful.

The form for federal employees who live and work outside D.C. has the Release of Employer Liability, the IRS instructions and the law allowing the employee to claim exempt from withholding, and one of many U.S. Supreme Court "Plain Language" decisions.

Method 1, Direct Claim Instructions:
If you are able to hand in, mail, email, upload or otherwise deliver the entire Employee Withholding Exemption Certificate package (linked below) directly to your employer, all 16 (or 7) pages, without claiming exempt online, then simply fill in the fields per the highlighted IRS instructions on page 2, print all 16 (or 7) pages, sign page 1, scan a PDF file for your archives, and deliver it to your employer. (Note: For those who want to electronically sign, download this form and use the Adobe Acrobat Sign feature.)
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The remaining 15 (or 6) pages of the package support the "Release of Employer Liability" that we've added to the bottom of the W-4E form. Be sure to read that note and read all the highlighted portions of the supporting documentation in the package, so that you fully understand what you are sending your employer. If you have any questions or concerns, call Freedom Law School at 813-444-4800 to discuss with an activist.

Method 2, Online Claim
If instead, you must claim exempt from withholding on your employer's online payroll system, the following step is necessary to fully protect you. The reason this is important to do is that by filing exempt on the company's online payroll system, you are not able to document that you are claiming exempt under duress because the law on withholding does not apply to them or to you. Also, online you are not able to document your understanding of the law and your intention to follow the law.

Instructions:
After claiming exempt on the company's online payroll system, do the following to legally and safely protect yourself. Mail the cover letter below with the 16-page (or 7-page) W-4E package by Certified Mail, by filling in the fields of the cover letter, printing the letter and signing it, then filling in the fields on the W-4 Employee Withholding Exemption Certificate (page 1 of the package).
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Before you put all 17 (or 8) pages in an envelope and seal the envelope, get a certified mailing slip from the post office and write the tracking number on the cover letter. Then copy, or scan a PDF file of all 17 (or 8) pages to keep as evidence if ever needed. Now you will be ready to seal and mail the envelope.

At the post office, go to the counter and have the attendant stamp the certified mail receipt and give it back to you. Copy or scan that stamped receipt and keep it with your copy of the package. This is important legal evidence that you mailed this package to your employer.

State Income Tax Withholding
This exemption will not stop state withholding if you work in one of the states with income taxes. Each state has its own forms and laws, some of which we have researched and some not yet. When we have completed our research we will post links to all state laws and forms related to income tax liability and withholding.
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Our main concern is the overwhelming overreach of the federal government, and the fact that 80% of income taxes are not collected by the IRS but by employers!
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Important!
Whether handing your employer the 16- or 7-page package or claiming exempt online and mailing the 17- or 8-page package by certified mail, claiming exempt from withholding is a temporary measure only. As soon as possible, you will want to send the Petition to Congress on employment tax laws. This will keep you out of prison for any criminal charges, unlikely as those may be, related to claiming exempt from federal income tax withholding.
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Claim Exempt every year
This is also a temporary solution because, by certifying on the IRS W-4E form that you were not liable to file and pay federal income taxes last year and you do not expect to be liable this year, the form only applies to this year. You are required by law to send another W-4E package by February 15 next year, to remain exempt from withholding next year also. We will make a new one available in late December based on the new IRS Form W-4, which the IRS updates every year.
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Permanent measure to STOP withholding

Payroll taxes will continue, unless ....
This claim for exemption from federal income tax withholding will not stop payroll taxes! (Payroll taxes are the "FICA" taxes usually shown as "Social Security" and "Medicare" taxes on your paystub.) Your employer is extremely unlikely to stop deducting 7.65% of your wages for payroll taxes. Your employer is also paying an additional 7.65% of your wages from the profits they earn from your labors.

How to STOP payroll taxes
As long as you are working as an employee rather than as an independent contractor or small businessperson, this 14.2% (geek calc: that's 15.3% of 107.65%) of the value you are adding to your employer's business will, almost without exception, go to the U.S. Treasury instead of to you. We recommend making plans to get yourself out of this predicament in which you are working for a government that is working against you.

If you are happy with your current employment, ask if it's possible to become an independent contractor. If you would like more fulfilling work, look for opportunities and ways to become an independent contractor, start a business, or become a partner or co-owner in a new field.

As a last resort, wait 60 days after sending your Petitions to Congress to see if any of your Congress members send you a response showing you from the laws and U.S. Supreme Court rules of interpretation that your Petition letters were wrong (which they can never do). Then you can send this letter to your employer with a copy of your Petition to Congress on the Employment Tax Laws issue (PTC #2).

If you are an employer, please check out our Employer Freedom Plan.