Employment tax due dates

Reporting due dates

Every employer engaged in a trade or business who pays remuneration for services performed by employees must report to the IRS the wage payments and related employment taxes, including income tax withholding, social security tax, Medicare tax and if applicable, Additional Medicare tax. Generally, employers must report wages, tips and other compensation paid to an employee by filing the required Form 941, Employer’s QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return. Small employers (those with annual employment tax liabilities of $1,000 or less) may file Form 944, Employer's ANNUAL Federal Tax Return, if approved by the IRS, and agricultural employers file Form 943, Employer's Annual Tax Return for Agricultural Employees. Most employers must also file Form 940, Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return, to report the wages paid subject to FUTA, and to compute the tax. All employment taxes, including FUTA, must be deposited timely and by the required method.

At the end of the year, the employer must submit a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, to report wages, tips and other compensation paid (including noncash payments) and the taxes withheld for each employee to the Social Security Administration (SSA).  Use Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, to transmit Forms W-2 to the SSA. You must provide a copy of Form W-2 to your employees so they can accurately report the wages you paid to them.

Everyone who is engaged in a trade or business that makes certain types of reportable payments must report the payment to the IRS. Form 1099-NEC, Nonemployee Compensation, is used for reporting payments for non-employee compensation of $600 or more to a payee. Form 1099-MISC, Miscellaneous Income, or another type of information return is used for reporting payments other than non-employee compensation. For further details see a guide to information returns.

An employer must file the required forms by the required due date. If the due date for filing a return falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then you may file the return on the next business day.

Forms filed quarterly with due dates of April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31 (for the fourth quarter of the previous calendar year)

• File Form 941 if you paid wages subject to employment taxes with the IRS for each quarter by the last day of the month that follows the end of the quarter. If you timely deposited all taxes when due, then you have 10 additional calendar days to file the return. See Publication 15, (Circular E) Employer's Tax Guide, for more information.

Forms filed annually with a due date of January 31

• File Forms W-2 with Form W-3 with the SSA to report wages paid and employment taxes withheld from these wages during the previous tax year. Forms W-2 are required to be provided to employees by January 31. Visit the SSA website Employer W-2 Filing Instructions & Information for more information about these forms.
• File Form 940 with the IRS to report taxable FUTA wages paid in the previous year. If you deposited all the FUTA tax when due, then you have 10 additional calendar days to file the Form 940. See Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax in Publication 15 for more information.
• File Form 943 with the IRS if you paid wages that were subject to employment taxes to farmworkers in the previous year. Form 943 is used only to report wages paid to farmworkers and these same wages are not reported on Form 941 or Form 944.
• File Form 944 with the IRS if the IRS has notified you in writing that you are to file Form 944 instead of Form 941 and you paid wages in the previous year subject to employment taxes. If you want to change whether you file a Form 941 or a Form 944 for the year, then follow the instructions for Form 944 to request this change. Until you receive written confirmation that your filing requirement has changed, continue to file the form the IRS previously notified you to file.
• File Form 1099-NEC with Form 1096, Annual Summary and Transmittal of U.S. Information Returns, with the IRS if you made payments in course of your trade or business totaling more than $600 to a payee for services performed by someone who is not your employee, cash payments for fish or fees to attorneys. Forms 1099-NEC must be provided to recipients by January 31. For more information regarding Form 1099-NEC refer to Reporting payments to independent contractors.
• File Form 945, Annual Return of Withheld Federal Income Tax, with the IRS to report federal income tax withheld (or required to be withheld) from nonpayroll payments. If you deposited all withheld income taxes when due, then you have 10 additional calendar days to file. See Nonpayroll Income Tax Withholding in Publication 15 for more information.

Forms filed annually with a due date of February 28 (or March 31 if filed electronically)

• File Form 1099-MISC with Form 1096 with the IRS to report rents, royalties, prizes and awards and other fixed or determinable income paid in the prior calendar year. See instructions for the Form 1099-MISC for all the different types of income that is required to be reported and the applicable dollar amount reporting threshold. Forms 1099-MISC and 1096 may be filed electronically, for more information see Publication 1220 PDF (PDF). If you file Forms 1099-MISC and 1096 electronically, then the due date is March 31. Generally, Forms 1099-MISC must be furnished to payees by January 31.
• File Form 8027, Employer’s Annual Information Return of Tip Income and Allocated Tips, with the IRS to make an annual report for the previous year for your receipts from food and beverages and for the tips employees reported to you if you are a “large food or beverage establishment.”  See Publication 15 for more information including the definition of a “large food or beverage establishment” and see Publication 1239, Specifications for Electronic Filing of Form 8027, Employer's Annual Information Return of Tip Income and Allocated Tips PDF PDF, for help in electronically filing Forms 8027. If you file Form 8027 electronically, then the due date is March.

E-filing requirements

Employers who file 10 or more information returns, Form 1099 series, Form 1042-S, and Form W-2, are required to file them electronically. Employers are to combine almost all information return types to determine whether a filer meets the 10-return threshold, this includes Forms W-2, filed with the Social Security Administration.

Employment tax returns, Forms 940, 941, 943, 944, and 945, maybe filed on paper or through e-file. For e-file, go to E-file employment tax forms for additional information. A fee may be charged to file electronically.

Tax deposit due dates

In general, there are different due dates for the deposit of taxes depending on the return the taxes are reported on, past filing history and additional factors. These deposit due dates often are different from the filing due dates of tax returns. Depositing the taxes alone does not report the taxes or relieve you of the requirement to file a return. If the due date for making your deposit falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then you may make your deposit on the next business day.

Electronic deposit required

Federal tax deposits must be made by electronic funds transfers (EFT).
You can make payments through your business tax account, through Direct Pay for businesses, using the government's free Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) or through one of the following methods that may charge a fee:

• Ask your financial institution to initiate an automated clearing house (ACH) credit payment on your behalf.
• Ask a trusted third party, such as a tax professional or payroll service, to make the payment for you.
• Ask your financial institution to make a same-day tax wire payment for you.

Federal income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare tax deposits

For taxes reported on Forms 941, 943, 944, or 945, there are two deposit schedules: monthly and semi-weekly. Before the beginning of each calendar year, you must determine which of the two deposit schedules you are required to use. The deposit schedule you must use is based on the total tax liability you reported on forms previously during the specified lookback period. The lookback period is different based on the form type. See the instructions for the form itself or Publication 15 for more information about the lookback period and how to determine which type of depositor you are.

Monthly depositor

Under the monthly deposit schedule, deposit employment taxes on payments made during a month by the 15th day of the following month. 

Semi-weekly depositor

Under the semiweekly deposit schedule, deposit employment taxes for payments made on Wednesday, Thursday, and/or Friday by the following Wednesday. Deposit taxes for payments made on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and/or Tuesday by the following Friday.

Next-day deposit rule

If you accumulate $100,000 or more in taxes on any day during a monthly or semiweekly deposit period, then you must deposit the tax by the next business day.

FUTA deposits

You must determine when to deposit your FUTA tax based on the amount of your tax liability as determined on a quarterly basis. If your FUTA tax liability is $500 or less in a quarter, then carry it over to the next quarter. For any quarter where your FUTA tax liability for that quarter (plus any undeposited amount from any earlier quarter) is $500 or more, deposit the entire amount of your FUTA tax liability as of the end of the quarter by the last day of the first month that follows the end of the quarter. If it is $500 or less for the fourth quarter, then you can make a deposit or pay the tax with your Form 940 by January 31.