Hello I recently got internal company transferred to my office in US. I came here on L1 visa. Currently my pay check which I'm receiving has nearly one third of my pay going away as Federal taxes, Social Security taxes, and State Taxes. Is there any way I can reduce my tax amount, so that I can get more money in my hands, in my future pay checks. For your information, I'm married, but my wife is currently staying back in home country. I plan to ask her to join me in couple of months. We both don't have any children yet. We don't have any other dependants at home. Given this background of mine. Are there any areas in US tax system which helps "non-immigrant L1 visa holder" to reduce pay check taxes ? Please help me. Appreciate your response!

The FICA (Social Security @ 6.2% and Medicare @ 1.45%) are FLAT taxes which cannot be changed.

The federal and state income tax withholding are driven by the status (MARRIED or SINGLE) and the number of allowances claimed on Form W-4 and the state-equivalent form.

For the W-4, under IRS rules for foreign workers, the MOST allowances that can be claimed for SINGLE status is ONE and for MARRIED status is TWO. This is done to ensure that enough money is withheld from your pay to cover your tax liability with the U.S. government.

As for the state, there are normally NO such restrictions.