Notice the title of the quoted section: 26 C.F.R. § 31.3402(p)-1 Voluntary withholding agreements. (a) In general. An employee and his employer may enter into an agreement under section 3402(b) to provide for the withholding of income tax upon payments of amounts described in paragraph (b)(1) of §31.3401(a)–3... it is all voluntary; you can refuse to enter into said agreement. Look at 3401(a)-3: (a) In general...the term “wages” includes the amounts described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section with respect to which there is a voluntary withholding agreement in effect under section 3402(p). So the circle is squared: p defines a and a defines p. You are now lost in the IRS circular logic, struggling with terms, when you should have noticed the word may at the beginning. Regardless of the definitions meant to confuse, the actual income tax is an excise tax on the use of Federal Reserve credit (non-interest bearing debt notes), and their redemption in public money takes you out of private law. Your signature on the W-4 is an adhesion contract: you have volunteered to be liable for the income tax. But you won't owe any tax if you redeem FRN's for lawful money. And you won't get into a fight with your employer when you have to tell him he has been duped by the IRS shyster lawyers all his life...
Freed