Reply #49: If I understand correctly, she will earn 30K for 3 mos work

[demwing]

That's 10k per month, or 120k per year, which puts her in the same 28% tax bracket as her 160k offer.

They'll either tax her at the correct rate (28%) and it wont matter, or they'll divide 160k by 12 (13,333), tax that by 28% (3,733) and deduct that from each of her 4 checks.

The first way she gets 7,500 gross * .72 = 5400 per check, even steven at the EOY
The second way she gets 7,500 gross - 3734 = 3766 per check, fat little return at the EOY.

Difference of $1634 per check, or $6,536. In other word, 21K for three months work, or 15K, with a fat tax return in April of 2010. Either way it's good money for this (or any other) economy.

Why not declare 1 exemption? I'ts simple, low maintenance, and honest. I really believe this is not as complicated as you have made it out to be.