What every Employer should know about Tax Form 941?

Employer who operate a business with regular employees should report tax withholding including employer's and the employee's contribution using 941 Form to the IRS.

The contributions are,

  • Total wages & compensation made to employees
  • Employer’s & Employees’ shares in Income taxes

IRS specifically designed the tax tax Form 941 to provide the employer with the above contributions.

If you own a company already or started a new business, then spend a few minutes here to know about the payroll tax form 941 in detail and to stay IRS compliant.

When to File Form 941?

Form 941 is due every quarter, and it means the employer has to report the taxes withheld from the employees after paying their wages at the end of the month following the end of the quarter.

Form 941 Filing Deadlines are,

941 First quarter deadline

First quarter

January to March is due on May 01,2023

Third quarter period

Second quarter

April to June is
due on July 31, 2023

Third quarter period

Third quarter

July to September is due on
October 31, 2023

Fourth quarter period

Fourth quarter

October to December is due on
January 31, 2024

Click here to learn more about Form 941 due dates.

Things to know in Form 941

  • In addition to withholding Medicare tax at 1.45%, you must withhold a 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax from employees' wages if paid more than $200,000 for the calendar year.
  • The current Social Security rate for both employees and the employer is 6.2%.
  • The Medicare tax rate for employees and employer is 1.45 %.
  • The failure-to-file penalty for a part or whole month would be 5% of the unpaid tax reported through the return. The maximum penalty charged would be 25%.

Things to know in Payroll Taxes

It is pretty good to stay compliant if paid your payroll taxes during the months covered by the 941 forms & showing "$0" due in the Form.

But what if you owe taxes?

You don't need to wait to pay all taxes for the quarter at that time of Form 941 filing. You must make either monthly or semi-weekly deposits, depending on the amount owed.


Warning: Don't pay tax deposits with your Form 941.If you’re required to make deposits and you paid the taxes with Form 941,you may be subject to penalty.The failure-to-pay penalty for the unpaid tax reported through the return would be 0.5% for a month.The maximum penalty charged would again be 25%.
Learn more


What IRS offers if you paid Payroll taxes on-time?

If you have made your payroll tax deposits for every quarter on time & have the proper payment records, you will have the ten days additional time to file your payroll tax form 941.

Let’s see about how to avoid the 941 penalties

You can avoid paying 941 penalties and interest if you follow the below points.

  • File your Form 941 on time.
  • Deposit or pay your full tax due amount.
  • Accurately report your tax liability.
  • Submit valid checks for making tax payments.
  • Issue accurate Form W-2 copies to employees.
  • Accurately Filing Form W-3 and Copy A of Form W-2s with the SSA on time.

Be aware of the IRS interest and penalties charged for late paid taxes and late-filed returns. File Form 941 Online to the IRS, to avoid these 941 late filing penalty.

How to file payroll tax form 941?

Get Started with TaxBandits, an Authorized IRS e-file provider which ensures e-filing of error-free Form with IRS. Our cloud-based application collects the required 941 details using simplified interview style form for an efficient way to e-file quarterly tax form 941 quickly and securely. In addition, we review and correct your form 941 if any standard errors so that your tax return is e-filed accurately and instantly with the IRS.


TaxBandits simplifies the Form 941 signing process

The IRS requires you to sign Form 941 before e-filing it. You may sign the form using the Online Signature PIN or Form 8453-EMP.

If you don't have an Online Signature PIN, don't worry! You can always use Form 8453-EMP to e-sign your Form 941 through TaxBandits and request a FREE Online Signature PIN with us for future use. And our extended features will lead you in filing your Form 941 efficiently. Visit Taxbandits.com to know more about the features we support.