16-minute slow read. An audio recording of this newsletter is available above for accessibility. Please let me know if you have any other access needs.
Hello to the 985 hotties who subscribe to this newsletter! Thank you for being here.
We are six sleeps away from the tax deadline, and I’ve gotten questions left and right about my thoughts on war tax resistance.
Dear hottie, I want to apologize to you for waiting until six days before the tax deadline to write this newsletter. I have been diligently researching the topic and listening to folx with more experience with me. Ultimately, I didn’t feel comfortable writing about it until I got all of the facts and felt my whole heart and soul behind the words on this page — er, this screen.
Nevertheless, I’m here to let you know that it’s not too late to become a war tax resister. I’m also here to let you know that if withholding your taxes isnn’t the right path for you to participate in liberatory action, that’s also fine. I’m only here to inform you, not to make choices for you. I trust you to make informed decisions that align with your values and sustain your long-term fight for liberation.
The information below was gathered from a War Tax Resistance 101 info session given by Lincoln Rice, coordinator at the National War Tax Resistance Coordinator Committee (NWTRCC). Lincoln has been a war tax resister himself since 1998 and he has a bachelor's degree in Accounting. I also used teachings from the Tax Resistance Collective’s Instagram, and I fact-checked as much as I could find from the IRS website.
If you prefer to speak directly with a war tax resistance counselor, you can find affiliate groups and counselors on NWTRCC’s website.
I’ll be answering these frequently asked questions below:
What is war tax resistance? Why are people doing it this year?
What is the history of war tax resistance? Am I the only one doing it this year?
How much of our tax dollars fund the military?
How do I become a war tax resister? (Separate sections for W-2 employees, 1099 self-employed workers, and gig workers)
I am owed a tax refund this year. Should I still become a war tax resister?
Will I go to jail? Will the IRS take my house or car? What’s the worst that can happen?
What are the actual risks?
I already filed my taxes. Is it too late to become a war tax resister?
How do I withhold my taxes for 2024 and future years?
Will I lose my EBT, Medicare, or Social Security benefits?
How will war tax resistance affect my student loans?
How do I talk to my accountant about war tax resistance?
Does withholding my taxes actually make an impact on the IRS?
What is war tax resistance? Why are so many people doing it this year?
War tax resistance is the act of withholding all or part of your federal taxes that fund war and military operations.
The only legal way to become a war tax resister is to earn less than the minimum taxable income. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the minimum taxable income for 2023 is $13,850. In most cases, war tax resistance is an act of civil disobedience.
This tax season, many people are seriously considering becoming war tax resisters because of the ongoing genocide of Palestinian people in Gaza. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, President Joe Biden has sent a total of $300 billion in economic and military aid to Israel since its founding in 1946. Activists have pointed out that this $300 billion in aid comes directly from our taxes. This is money that could easily wipe out student debt, build better infrastructure in our country, and so much more.
In an Instagram Reel from March 7, the Tax Resistance Collective said, “The pervasive narrative and outrage of ‘Our tax dollars are funding genocide’ should and must be channeled into concrete action.”
What is the history of war tax resistance? Am I the only one doing it this year?
Because war tax resistance is an act of civil disobedience, it’s relatively hard to track how many people are actually resisting.
One of the oldest recorded instances of war tax resistance is on July 23, 1846, when the writer, naturalist, and transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau was arrested for nonpayment of his local poll tax.
Interest in war tax resistance typically peaks during times of political unrest.
According to the War Resisters League, the number of known tax resisters grew from 275 in 1966 to an estimated 20,000 in the early 1970s to protest against the Vietnam War. In 2020, in response to the Black Lives Matter protests, an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 people withheld their taxes to protest the funding of police, Lincoln Rice of NWTRCC told media organization Waging on Violence.
How much of our tax dollars fund the military?
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the government spent 13% of the 2023 federal budget – or $806 billion – on defense spending, which includes weapons and military personnel. In contrast, only 8% of the federal budget went to economic security programs like Social Security or the Child Tax Credit, which assists low- and moderate-income working families.
To help people calculate exactly how much of their taxes goes to funding war, the National Priorities Project created a calculator that shows taxpayers how their tax dollars were spent. You’ll need to provide your total taxes paid, which can be found on line 16 on your Form 1040, labeled “total tax.”
How do I become a war tax resister?
Hourly or salaried employees (W-2)
Employees who receive a salary or hourly wage are required to fill out a W-4 form when you first start working. The National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee (NWTRCC) provides a practical guide on how to fill out your W-4 and withhold whatever amount you choose. You will end up owing taxes next year, and you can choose not to pay what you owe.
You don’t have to tell your employer why you’re adjusting your withholding amount and your employer has limited ability to reject your W-4. However, the IRS may send a “lock-in” letter to your employer if they suspect alarming underpayment. In that case, your employer might ask you to fill out your W-4 again “correctly.”
Self-employed workers (1099)
Self-employed workers have a simpler route to war tax resistance. Self-employed workers don’t file a W-4 and receive a pre-tax payment from clients. To become a war tax resister, you simply have to underpay your quarterly estimated taxes.
The general rule of thumb for people who receive a 1099 tax form from clients is that you will owe between 30-35% of your profit (revenue minus expenses) to the IRS due each quarter. For example, if you earned a profit of $10,000, you will likely owe $3,500 in taxes.
Many war tax resisters are withholding between 43-45% of their taxes owed this year. In this example, you’ll withhold 45% of $3,500, which means you’ll write a check worth $1,925 — 55% of your taxes owed — to the IRS.
Please note: These numbers are simply estimates and hypothetical examples. Everything here is for educational purposes, NOT advice.
Gig workers (1099-K)
Gig workers like rideshare drivers or food delivery workers receive a 1099-K. Like a self-employed 1099 worker, you receive your wages pre-tax. To become a war tax resister, you must follow the same steps as 1099 workers.
The main difference is that Uber, Lyft, Postmates, or whichever app handles your payment, has reported your income for you in one report, versus a regular 1099 from multiple clients that may be harder for the IRS to track because they come in asynchronously. This makes 1099-K employees slightly more vulnerable to risk and consequences.
I am owed a tax refund this year. Should I still become a war tax resister?
There’s a big difference between filing your taxes and paying your taxes. While some war tax resisters choose not to file their taxes at all, many still do — especially if they are owed a tax refund.
The Tax Resistance Collective says in a video, “We are NOT trying to push people to not file at all, especially if you’re in the case of owing little to nothing or are in line for a refund. Even if you’re somebody who decides that you want to withhold all of your taxes owed, you can and probably still should file. It’s safer down the line.”
Will I go to jail? Will the IRS take my house or car? What’s the worst that can happen?
The last record of someone going to jail for being a war tax resister was in 1974, says Lincoln Rice of the NWTRCC. Martha Tranquilli of Sacramento, California was convicted for “tax fraud” because she claimed six peace groups as dependents on her Form 1040. Lincoln also says that the IRS stopped prosecuting war tax resisters because the government found that it only heightened publicity and interest for the cause.
Additionally, the last time the IRS has seized property, like a house or a car, was in 1998.
With that being said, the legal repercussions of going to jail or having your property seized still remains in place. While the risk is always there, the occurrence of these consequences is statistically rare.
What are the actual risks?
Here are some of the common repercussions faced by longtime war tax resisters:
Received computer-generated letters from the IRS demanding that they pay what they owe.
Wages or Social Security benefits garnished by 15% within a year.
Retirement or investment accounts were levied. A levy is a legal seizure of your property to satisfy a tax debt.
Interest or penalties – you’ll probably see your tax debt double.
Difficulty getting student loans
Public lien that can affect credit
Loss of passport for debts over $62,000
I already filed my taxes. Is it too late to become a war tax resister?
Again, filing your taxes is different from paying your taxes. If you owe taxes and you still haven’t paid, you are in a position to withhold your taxes, if you choose. If you received a return, the best course of action is to change your withholding for future years.
Will I lose my EBT, Medicare, or Social Security benefits?
In some cases, you may lose your EBT or Medicare benefits. You won’t lose all of your Social Security benefits, but your benefits may be levied by the IRS. This means that the IRS will take the amount that you owe from your Social Security benefits.
The Tax Resistance Collective has compiled a mutual aid directory with services and organizations that could replace EBT or Medicare benefits.
How will war tax resistance affect my student loans?
If you’re paying back your student loans, your monthly payment is calculated based on your most recent adjusted gross income (AGI) on your Form 1040, line 11. From my research, war tax resistance does not affect your eligibility for income-driven repayment plans, but it affects the amount you owe each month.
How do I talk to my accountant about war tax resistance?
Lincoln Rice at NWTRCC says that most accountants don’t really know about war tax resistance. Accountants may fear legal repercussions of filing taxes “incorrectly.” In this instance, it might be beneficial to talk to a war tax resistance counselor through NWTRCC in addition to your accountant.
Is there a legal way to become a war tax resister?
The only legal way to become a war tax resister is to earn less than the taxable income threshold. In 2023, that amount is $13,850.
Does withholding my taxes actually make an impact on the IRS?
It’s difficult to track how many people are actually war tax resisters because this is an act of civil disobedience punishable by law and because people owe such varying amounts each year. This makes it almost impossible to discern whether or not war tax resistance is making enough of a “financial impact” to actually stop sending weapons to Israel.
In my work as an anti-capitalist financial coach, I help my clients hold the complex reality of how much their values-aligned actions impact their own financial wellbeing versus the systems at large. It is completely understandable to feel like war tax resistance might not be worth it if we can’t measure how it’s affecting the American empire.
But I also see war tax resistance as the beginning of a lifelong financial commitment to divesting from oppressive systems. It can be a meaningful site for changing your relationship with money.