Important Dates

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Federal Employer Tax Calendar for this Quarter
This tax calendar covers various due dates of interest to employers. Principally, it covers the following federal taxes.

• Income tax you withhold from your employees' wages or from nonpayroll amounts you pay out.
• Social security and Medicare taxes (FICA taxes) you withhold from your employees' wages and the social security and Medicare taxes you must pay as an employer.
• Federal unemployment (FUTA) tax you must pay as an employer.

The calendar lists due dates for filing returns and for making deposits of these three taxes throughout the year. Use this calendar with Publication 15 (Circular E), which gives the deposit rules.


Forms you may need
The following is a list and description of the primary employment tax forms you may need.

Form 940, Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return - This form is due the last day of the first calendar month after the calendar year ends. Use it to report the FUTA tax on wages you paid.

Form 941, Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return - This form is due the last day of the first calendar month after the calendar quarter ends. Use it to report social security and Medicare taxes and withheld income taxes on wages if your employees are not farm workers or household employees..

Form 943, Employer's Annual Federal Tax Return for Agricultural Employees - This form is due the last day of the first calendar month after the calendar year ends. Use it to report social security and Medicare taxes and withheld income taxes on wages if your employees are farm workers.

Form 944, Employer's ANNUAL Federal Tax Return - This form is due the last day of the first calendar month after the calendar year ends. Certain small employers use it instead of Form 941 to report social security and Medicare taxes and withheld income tax.

Form 945, Annual Return of Withheld Federal Income Tax - This form is due the last day of the first calendar month after the calendar year ends. Use it to report income tax withheld on all nonpayroll items. Nonpayroll items include the following.

• Backup withholding
• Withholding on pensions, annuities, IRAs, and gambling winnings
• Payments of Indian gaming profits to tribal members

Fiscal-year taxpayers - The dates in this calendar apply whether you use a fiscal year or the calendar year as your tax year. The only exception is the date for filing Forms 5500, Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan, and 5500­EZ, Annual Return of One­Participant (Owners and Their Spouses) Retirement Plan. These employee benefit plan forms are due by the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends. See July31.

Extended due dates - If you timely deposit in full the tax you are required to report on Form 940, 941, 943, 944, or 945, you have an additional 10 calendar days to file that form.

If you are subject to the semiweekly deposit rule, see Table 2 for your deposit due dates. However, if you accumulate $100,000 or more of taxes on any day during a deposit period, you must deposit the tax by the next business day instead of the date shown in Table 2.

Employer Federal Tax Calendar
The fourth quarter of a calendar year is made up of October, November, and December.

October 15
Social security, Medicare, and withheld income tax
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in September.

Nonpayroll withholding
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in September.

October 31
Social security, Medicare, and withheld income tax
File Form 941 for the third quarter of 2014. Deposit or pay any undeposited tax under the accuracy of deposit rules. If your tax liability is less than $2,500, you can pay it in full with a timely filed return. If you deposited the tax for the quarter timely, properly, and in full, you have until November 10 to file the return.

Federal unemployment tax
Deposit the tax owed through September if more than $500.

Certain small employers
Deposit any undeposited tax if your tax liability is $2,500 or more for 2014 but less than $2,500 for the third quarter.

During November
Income tax withholding
Ask employees whose withholding allowances will be different in 2015 to fill out a new Form W-4 or Form W-4(SP). The 2015 revision of Form W-4 will be available on the IRS website by mid-December.

November 10
Social security, Medicare, and withheld income tax
File Form 941 for the third quarter of 2014. This due date applies only if you deposited the tax for the quarter timely, properly, and in full.

November 17
Social security, Medicare, and withheld income tax
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in October.

Nonpayroll withholding
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in October.

December 15
Social security, Medicare, and withheld income tax
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in November.

Nonpayroll withholding
If the monthly deposit rule applies, deposit the tax for payments in November.


The information in this tax calendar comes from the Internal Revenue Service Publication 509.

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