Form 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return is used by employers to report the taxes withheld from employee wages such as federal income tax, social security tax and Medicare tax.
📝 An additional Medicare tax will be withheld, if the employee wages exceed $200,000 for a year.
What's New for 2025
The IRS has introduced key updates for Form 941 in 2025, impacting wages, thresholds, and electronic filing.
Social Security Tax: 6.2% for both employee and employer; wage base limit is $176,100.
Medicare Tax: 1.45% for both, no wage base limit (same as 2024).
Household Workers: Taxes apply if you pay $2,800 or more in cash wages.
Election Workers: Taxes apply if paid $2,400 or more in cash or an equivalent.
Electronic filing option:Form 941-X can now be filed electronically.
E-filing Form 941 is faster, safer, and IRS-recommended.
File with TaxZerone and receive instant IRS status updates—accurate and secure.
Form 941 is filed quarterly by most businesses that pay wages to employees and withhold taxes such as federal income tax, Social Security tax, and Medicare tax. You can efile IRS Form 941 online for a faster and more accurate submission.
Note: If you don't have any employees during a particular quarter or if you have no tax liability for a quarter, you may still be required to file a Form 941 to report that no wages were paid, and no taxes were withheld.
Exceptions
Employers who received notification from IRS to file Form 944 instead of quarterly form 941
Seasonal employers are not needed to file Form 941 for the quarter if the wages are not paid.
Employers of household employees should file schedule H of Form 1040 instead of Form 941.
Employers of farm employees should file Form 943 instead of Form 941 for wages paid for agricultural labor.
When are Form 941 due?
The deadline for filing Form 941 is typically the last day of the month that follows the end of the calendar quarter.
Quarter
Quarter Includes
Deadline
Q1
January, February, March
April 30
Q2
April, May, June
July 31
Q3
July, August, September
October 31
Q4
October, November, December
January 31
Note: Dates may change due to weekends or federal holidays.
How to File IRS Form 941: Required Information
Business Details - Legal name, EIN, and business address.
Employee Details - Number of employees and total taxable wages paid during the quarter.
Taxes -
Federal income tax withheld from employee wages
Social Security and Medicare taxes
Taxable Social Security and Medicare wages and tips
Any Additional Medicare tax withheld (if applicable)
Deposits - Any federal tax deposits made during the quarter toward your payroll tax liability.
Schedule B (Form 941) - Required only if you're a semiweekly schedule depositor or if you accumulate $100,000 or more in tax liability on any day in the quarter. Use this form to report daily tax liabilities.
Instructions for Form 941
Follow these instructions to file accurately with the IRS.
Enter the Employer Identification Number (EIN), legal name of the employer, Business name, complete address including street name, city, state, and Zip code.
On the right side of the form, check the appropriate box such as Quarter 1 or Quarter 2 or Quarter 3 or Quarter 4 for the quarter you are filing.
Part 1: Quarter Details
Line 1
Enter the number of employees who received wages, tips or other compensation during a specific pay period - March 12 (Quarter 1), June 12 (Quarter 2), September 12 (Quarter 3), or December 12 (Quarter 4).
Don't include these employees:
Household employees
Employees in non-pay status for the pay period
Farm employees
Pensioners
Active members of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Tips: Employers in American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), and Puerto Rico can skip lines 2 and 3, except when they have employees subject to U.S. income tax withholding.
Line 2
Enter the wages, tips and other compensation paid during the quarter. This includes
Sick pay paid by your agent
Sick pay paid by third party that is not your agent (e.g.: insurance company) if you were notified on time that the payments were made
The third party has transferred the liability for paying the employer’s taxes (like Social Security and Medicare) to you.
Note: Do not report if you paid sick pay as a third party (not an employer agent) as long as you gave the policyholder timely notice about those payments.
Line 3
Enter the federal income tax withheld from employees on this quarter's wages, tips, and other compensation benefits. Enter the federal income tax withheld or required to withhold by a third-party payer of sick pay.
Line 4
Check the box on line 4, if wages, tips, and other compensation are not subject to Social Security or Medicare tax and proceed with line 6. If this question does not apply to you, leave the box blank.
Line 5a: Taxable Social Security Wages
In Column 1, enter the total amount of employee wages that are subject to Social Security tax and multiply that number by 0.124 to get the tax. Enter the result in Column 2.
Employers should stop collecting social security tax once an employee attains a taxable wage and tips of $176,100. Income and Medicare taxes must still be withheld on all wages and tips.
Line 5b: Taxable Social Security Tips
In column 1, enter the total tips your employees reported that are subject to Social Security tax and multiply that number by 0.124. Enter the result in Column 2.
Line 5c: Taxable Medicare Wages and Tips
In column 1, enter the total wages, tips, sick pay, and taxable fringe benefits subject to Medicare tax and multiply the total by 0.029. Enter the result in Column 2.
Line 5d: Wages & Tips subject to Additional Medicare Tax
Enter all wages, tips, sick pay, and taxable fringe benefits that are subject to Additional Medicare Tax withholding. Employers are required to withhold additional Medicare tax for employees who earned more than $200,000.
In column 1, enter the amount over $200,000 that is subject to the Additional Medicare Tax and multiply by 0.009 (0.9%). Enter the result in Column 2.
Line 5e: Total Social Security and Medicare Taxes
Add all amounts in Column 2 from lines 5a through 5d and enter the result on line 5e.
Line 5f: Section 3121(q) Notice and Demand - Tax Due on Unreported Tips
Enter the amount of tax due from unreported tips on line 5f.
Section 3121(q) Notice and Demand is issued by the IRS to inform an employer about the amount of tips that employees have either failed to report or have underreported.
Line 6: Total Taxes Before Adjustments
To calculate the total taxes before adjustments, add the amount entered in
Total federal income tax withheld from wages, tips, and other compensation (line 3)
Total social security and Medicare taxes (line 5e)
Tax due under Section 3121(q) Notice and Demand (line 5f)
Enter the result on line 6.
Line 7: Current quarter's adjustment for fractions of cents.
Enter any adjustments for fractions of cents (due to rounding) that occur when calculating Social Security and Medicare taxes in column 2 of lines 5a–5d.
Line 8: Current quarter's adjustment for sick pay
If your third-party payer of sick pay (not an agent) has withheld and deposited the employee share of social security and Medicare taxes and transfers the employer tax share to you, enter a negative adjustment on line 8.
If you are the third-party sick pay payer and transfers employers tax share to the employer, then enter a negative adjustment on line 8
No need to adjust on line 8 if the sick pay is paid by third party (employers' agent)
Include the sick pay on line 5a, line 5c, and line 5d if the withholding threshold is met.
Line 9: Current quarter's adjustments for tips and group-term life insurance.
Enter a negative adjustment for any uncollected employee share of social security and Medicare taxes on tips and group-term life insurance premiums paid for former employees.
Line 10: Total Taxes After Adjustments
Add the amounts on line 6 through 9 and enter the result.
Line 11: Qualified Small Business Payroll Tax Credit for Increasing Research Activities
Enter the amount of the credit from Form 8974, line 12. If applicable enter line 17. Attach Form 8974 to this return.
Note: If you enter an amount on line 11, you must attach Form 8974.
Line 12: Total Taxes After Adjustments and Nonrefundable Credits
Subtract line 11 from line 10 and enter the result on line 12 which cannot be less than zero.
1. If Line 12 or last quarter’s Line 12 is less than $2,500, and you didn’t have a $100,000 next-day deposit obligation.
You can pay the amount with Form 941, or you may deposit separately. You must pay on time to avoid penalties.
2. If line 12 or last quarter’s Line 12 is $2,500 or more and you incurred a $100,000 next-day deposit obligation.
You must deposit your taxes according to your deposit schedule (monthly or semiweekly). The amount on Line 12 must match the “Total liability for the quarter” on Line 16 or Schedule B (Form 941).
Note: Semiweekly schedule depositor must complete Schedule B (Form 941). If failed, the IRS may impose deposit penalties.
Line 13: Total Deposits for This Quarter
Enter total deposits you made for this quarter, including any overpayment from a previous quarter that you decided to apply to this return (instead of getting a refund). Also include any overpayment that you applied for from filing Form 941-X, 941-X (PR), or 944-X in the current quarter.
Line 14: Balance Due
The amount entered on line 12 is more than line 13, enter the difference on line 14.
Line 15: Overpayment
If line 13 is greater than line 12, enter the difference on line 15. If you made over payment, you can either get a refund from the IRS or apply it to your next return.
Part 2: Deposit Schedule and Tax Liability for this Quarter
Line 16:
For this current quarter or previous quarter, Line 12 is less than $2,500 and you didn’t owe $100,000 next-day deposit obligation during the quarter. check the first box on line 16 and go to Part 3.
Check the second box on line 16, if you are a monthly schedule depositor. Enter the tax liability for each month. Add the amounts for each month and enter the result in the “Total liability for quarter” box which should be equal to amount entered on line 12.
Tips: You must enter the actual tax liability for each month, not the tax deposits you made during the month.
Check the third box on line 16, if you are a semiweekly depositor for any quarter. Submit Schedule B with your Form 941 and go to part 3.
Part 3: About Business
Check the box on line 17 if your business has closed or stopped paying wages. Enter the last date wages were paid.
Additionally, attach a Final Payroll Statement that includes all relevant payroll details, such as the name of the person responsible for maintaining payroll records and the address where the records will be stored. This statement is crucial for ensuring proper documentation of your final payroll.
During e-filing, additional details will be collected to ensure compliance and accurate processing of your return.
Check the box on line 18, if you are an employer who hires employees seasonally and doesn’t file every quarter with the IRS.
Part 4: Third-Party Designee
Select the “Yes” box if an employer allows an employee or tax preparer to discuss IRS Form 941 return with the IRS. You must provide the designee’s name, phone number, and a 5-digit personal identification number (PIN) for security when talking to the IRS.
Select the “No” box, if only you can discuss the return with the IRS.
Part 5: Signature and Authorization
Choose one of the following signature options:
Form 8453-EMP Signature Document Enter the signatory details and e-sign on Form 8453-EMP
(OR)
94x Online Signature PIN Enter the name, title of signer and 10-digit signature PIN provided by the IRS to authenticate you as an authorized signer.
TaxZerone supports easily allowing e-signatures, ensuring a seamless process for your filing.
Sources and References
The information provided is based on guidelines from the IRS website. For more information, check the IRS instructions for Form 941 and Employer’s Tax Guide.
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