How to File Employee Payroll Taxes

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Filing employee payroll taxes is important for any small business with employees. Here's how to do it.
As an employer, you must report your business's taxable income and pay federal taxes related to your employees. These taxes include federal income tax withholding, Social Security tax, Medicare tax and unemployment taxes. Each federal tax has its own payment deadlines and forms to send to the IRS. Employers must withhold and collect payroll taxes, pay the taxes to the IRS, create reports on the taxes paid, and file payroll tax reports.

Steps for filing employee payroll taxes
Step 1: Complete and submit IRS Form 941 (Employer's Quarterly Income Tax Return) or IRS new zealand whatsapp number Form 943 (Employer's Annual Federal Tax Return for Agriculture Employees).
Fill in Form 941 once per quarter to report employees' wages and tips. Calculate the federal income tax, Social Security tax, and Medicare taxes to withhold and submit to the IRS. Use this form to account for other types of payments (e.g., COBRA health insurance continuation assistance). (Form 943 is due by January 31 of the year after you paid wages to your workers.)

Submit the form before the last day of the month after the end of each quarter: April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31.

Step 2: Complete and submit IRS Form 940 for Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA).
Employers must pay the FUTA tax if they either pay $1,500 or more in employee wages during any calendar quarter of the previous year or if they have at least one employee who worked 20 or more weeks. Use Form 940 to submit the tax owed for the year by January 31.

The employer must calculate the FUTA tax owed each quarter and submit payment when the cumulative annual amount reaches $500. If the employer owes less than $500 after one quarter, they can carry it forward to the next quarter until they reach the $500 threshold.

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Step 3: Register for the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS).
All employers must make their tax payments using EFTPS (i.e., mailing checks is not allowed). If the IRS has not automatically enrolled the employer in EFTPS, the employer can visit eftps.gov to create a new account. (Select "Enroll," then click the box marked "Business.")

Registration for EFTPS requires an employer identification number, as well as a business bank account and routing numbers from which to make payments. Employers must enroll at least two weeks before the payment deadline, as it takes two weeks to receive a PIN to access EFTPS.

Step 4: Submit tax payments.
Use EFTPS to pay employee income tax, Social Security tax, Medicare taxes, and unemployment taxes as calculated on Forms 940, 941, and 943.

When visiting eftps.gov:

Click on "Make a payment."
Enter the EIN, PIN and password.
Make the payment.
The payment will be debited from the employer's bank account and submitted to the IRS. Upon making the payment, the employer receives a tracking number (retain this information for your records). Make EFTPS payments no later than 8:00 p.m. EST the day before payment is due to receive credit for paying taxes due on time.