immigrants and taxes

[notyoubob]

I have a question of fellow DBers: It seems that there is a notion that "immigrants don't pay taxes." Is this true? Doesn't rent include property taxes? How about sales taxes at Wally World?
Also it seems to me, and I have to assume this ( I know... AssUMe) that the immigrant workers at the packing plants are not subcontractors, therefore does not Excel or whoever deduct state and federal taxes from all paychecks? If so, where does that money go? Maybe the answer will shed some light on why the immigration "problem" is not going to be solved any time soon.
Please enlighten me.

[Army_of_One]

I have wondered that also......

[Highwayman]

True on the rent and true on the sales tax. Employers like Excel will withhold taxes but the ones that pick up odd jobs for cash don’t have withholding. In the case of withholding all too often an illegal will use a fake or stolen SS number and claim 14 exemptions to minimize the withholding and never file. The IRS will issue some kind of ID number if you don’t have a SS number and some do file taxes that way. Illegals do pay some taxes but overall not as much as they should. As with everything else the ones that cheat the system get the most attention and the ones that try to play fair get overlooked.

[TexKan]

Now this is what I heard...... heard on the radio.

Illegals pay taxes - they go into the funds..... federal and SS. Some illegals do return and claim thier SS $$ at a much later day. The problem with the day worker is that it's a cash and carry business. It's US cash carried over to Mexico. Many actually do pay into the system but the type jobs they have resturatnte and maids and such utilize our ER's as clinics and they really are the ones that drain much of the system. The Excel workers don't drain the system so much - they actually have insurance that pays. It's the large families and wives that don't work that makes them very elegiable for many programs. Course all the girlfriends along the way don't help. XL and production workers generally have bennies. But the REAL numbers are in agriculture, and the service industry.

[DCFan]

How many US citizens don't claim their cash and carry work on thier income tax return? I know lots of people that buy thier groceriers etc. through their business accounts. That's all cheating on thier taxes. Also, I'd have to check but I think that people claim thier exemptions on their tax return not when determineing their withholding. If you have money withheld from your check and never file a tax return the money all stays with the government. Maybe the federal government is interested in keeping things the way they are so that they can keep all that money.

[Detector]

If you have money withheld from your check and never file a tax return the money all stays with the government.

Thats a big IF. IF I was not planning on filing taxes(illegal) I would have the minimum taken out for taxes at work. Normally I'd have to pay in a small fortune come tax time but since I don't file I don't pay.

[K C Muffin]

Well, I know because I'd done it before. You can withhold with as many exemptions as you want, making your withholding very, very small in some cases. I did it to buy a house. I didn't care to have the giant refund at the end of the year, so I "withheld" more deductions than I actually had, making my take-home pay more, making me able to purchase a home. It all netted out in the end. But I had the additional money to make a house payment every month instead of paying it all in taxes and getting it back at the end of the year.

If these guys are doing it (and I honestly don't know what they're doing), they can claim as many as they want, making their withholding very, very small. If they don't file a tax return, they don't get it back. But it's precious little in the meantime.

So the question is, do they really pay taxes? They do on their rent and purchases, but probably not enough by % on their income. Then again, I wouldn't live like they have to live in order to send so much home. I think the tax thing becomes a huge slap in the face in the instance of the migrant farm workers who are illegal. I really think taxes aren't withheld, which also means a smaller tax liability on the part of the employer. He all of a sudden doesn't contribute to Social Security.

[Detector]

And if you really want to get crafty you can have several names and SS#, as I hear is pretty popular, and with a crap full of dependents, even claim a half dozen or so in Mexico, I can get earned income credit. and not only not pay taxes but have the good old government pay me a butt load back.

[K C Muffin]

say it ain't so! EIC doesn't return more than you paid in, does it? Or am I completely off my rocker? I thought EIC was just another deduction. Man, oh, man. I'm gonna have to make another visit to the tax man.

[Army_of_One]

Originally Posted by K C Muffin

say it ain't so! EIC doesn't return more than you paid in, does it? Or am I completely off my rocker? I thought EIC was just another deduction. Man, oh, man. I'm gonna have to make another visit to the tax man.

Hell yeah it does. FOR EXAMPLE: I know some single mom's that make about 20,000 a year and have a kid. They file, get EIC and get like $6000.00 back on their taxes...(non home owners) They do NOT pay in that much. It's ME subsidizing THEM to raise THEIR kids. I withhold at 0/S (the max) and invest in IRA's but since I don't have a heard of kids or am buying ahouse I still have to pay at the end of each year.....blah!