I am finally legal here and I will be getting taxed next paycheck.
Well, not exactly (I don’t think anyways). In my contract it was stated that my school would be deducting taxes from me each month. I said that I wasn’t comfortably with that and that my gf did my taxes. They had a little discussion in chinese for a minute and then replied “yes, that is fine.” So the new contract came out and no problem. They aren’t taking my taxes off.
The way my ex-gf explained it to me was that she doesn’t get taxed all year, and then come tax time she claculates how much she owes…
I assumed that this was the same for me but the more I think about it the more ridiculous it sounds.
The main reason I told them I didn’t want them to deduct my taxes every month was b/c I didn’t want to lose 20% for the first 6 months. I would rather have that money now and then pay whatever tax I owe when tax time comes next year.
Legally they should be deducting the 20% etc, even a local should have a deduction, albeit not necessarily 20%.
I would prefer it that way, think of it as forced savings if at the end of theyear you are due a refund. Also remember, that when you file, you have to pay the full amount due there and then, cannot delay, so if you have allowed for it then fine, if not, then it can be a large sum of money to try and find suddenly
If they are going to do the deduction for you, just be sure that they really do contribute the taxes, if you know what I mean…
Back in the days when I was the naive little Aussie who had just arrived in Taiwan, and who obviously still had no reason to not trust others, I made an arrangement with my first employer to have them deduct my taxes. I wasn’t aware of the legality of the procedure, but I received a big susprise come tax time, when my employer suddenly reversed their decision and decided that I would be arranging my own taxes. The lack of paperwork was what really nailed me; I was paid in cash each month and there seemed to be scant record of my hours/wages, etc. This led to a big dispute, and I then quit the company (without a record of taxed income). This in turn, made it impossible for me to file future taxes. Four years later, and I thought the government would have realised… I suppose i am still a little naive after all.