Instructions For Form 941 - Employer'S Quarterly Federal Tax Return

Use Form 941 to report:

If your business has closed . . .

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payroll taxes (withheld federal income tax and both

If you go out of business or stop paying wages to your

employee and employer shares of social security and

employees, you must file a final return. To tell the IRS that

Medicare taxes) for the quarter;

the form for a particular quarter is your final return, check

•

current quarter’s adjustments to social security and

the box on line 16 and enter the date that you last paid

Medicare taxes for fractions of cents, sick pay, tips, and

wages. Also attach a statement to your return showing the

group-term life insurance; and

name of the person keeping the payroll records and the

•

prior quarters’ adjustments to payroll taxes (attach Form

address where those records will be kept.

941c).

See the Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 for

Do not use the Form 941 to report backup withholding or

information about earlier dates for the expedited furnishing

income tax withholding on nonpayroll payments such as

and filing of Forms W-2 when a final Form 941 is filed.

pensions, annuities, and gambling winnings. Report these

If you participated in a statutory merger or consolidation,

types of withholding on Form 945, Annual Return of

or qualify for predecessor-successor status due to an

Withheld Federal Income Tax.

acquisition, you should generally file Schedule D (Form

941), Report of Discrepancies Caused by Acquisitions,

Who Must File Form 941?

Statutory Mergers, or Consolidations. See the Instructions

for Schedule D (Form 941) to determine whether you should

If you are an employer, you must file a quarterly Form 941 to

file Schedule D (Form 941) and when you should file it.

report:

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wages you have paid,

•

When Must You File?

tips your employees have received,

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federal income tax you withheld,

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File your initial Form 941 for the quarter in which you first

both the employer’s and the employee’s share of social

paid wages that are subject to social security and Medicare

security and Medicare taxes, and

•

taxes or subject to federal income tax withholding. See the

advance earned income tax credit (EIC) payments.

table below titled, When To File Form 941.

After you file your first Form 941, you must file a return

Then you must file for every quarter after that — every 3

for each quarter even if you have no taxes to report unless

months — even if you have no taxes to report (unless you

you filed a final return or one of the exceptions (below)

are a seasonal employer or are filing your final return. See

applies.

Seasonal employers and If your business has closed . . .

above).

Exceptions

File Form 941 only once for each quarter. If you filed

Special rules apply to some employers.

•

electronically, do not also file a paper Form 941. For more

Seasonal employers are not required to file a Form 941

information about filing Form 941 electronically, see

for quarters when they have no tax liability because they

Electronic Filing and Payment on page 1.

have paid no wages. To tell the IRS that you will not file a

return for one or more quarters during the year, check the

When To File Form 941

box on line 17 every quarter you file the form. See section

12 of Pub. 15 (Circular E) for more information.

Your Form 941 is due by the last day of the month that follows the end of the

•

Employers of household employees do not usually file

quarter.

Form 941. See Pub. 926, Household Employer’s Tax Guide,

Form 941

and Schedule H (Form 1040), Household Employment

The Quarter Includes . . .

Quarter Ends

Is Due

Taxes, for more information.

•

Employers of farm employees do not usually file Form

1. January, February, March

March 31

April 30

941. See Form 943, Employer’s Annual Tax Return for

2. April, May, June

June 30

July 31

Agricultural Employees, and Pub. 51 (Circular A),

3. July, August, September

September 30

October 31

Agricultural Employer’s Tax Guide.

4. October, November, December

December 31

January 31

If none of the above exceptions applies and you

TIP

have not filed a final return, you must file Form 941

For example, generally you must report wages you pay

each quarter even if you did not pay wages during

during the first quarter — which is January through March —

the quarter. Use IRS e-file, if possible.

by April 30th. If you made deposits in full payment of your

taxes for a quarter, you have 10 more days after the due

What if you reorganize or close your

dates shown above to file your Form 941.

business?

We consider your form filed on time if it is properly

addressed and mailed First-Class or if it is sent by an

If you sell or transfer your business . . .

IRS-designated delivery service on or before the due date.

If you sell or transfer your business, you and the new owner

See Pub. 15 (Circular E) for more information on

must each file a Form 941 for the quarter in which the

IRS-designated delivery services.

transfer occurred. Report only the wages you paid.

If any due date for filing shown above falls on a Saturday,

When two businesses merge, the continuing firm must file

Sunday, or legal holiday, you may file your return on the

a return for the quarter in which the change took place and

next business day.

the other firm should file a final return.

How Should You Complete Form 941?

Changing from one form of business to another — such as

from a sole proprietorship to a partnership or corporation —

is considered a transfer. See section 1 of Pub. 15

Review Your Business Information at the

(Circular E). If a transfer occurs, you may need a new

Top of the Form

employer identification number (EIN). Attach a statement to

your return with:

If you are using a copy of Form 941 that has your business

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the new owner’s name (or the new name of the business),

name and address preprinted at the top of the form, check

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whether the business is now a sole proprietorship,

to make sure that the information is correct. Carefully review

partnership, or corporation;

your EIN to make sure that it exactly matches the EIN

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the kind of change that occurred (a sale or transfer);

assigned to your business by the IRS. If any information is

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the date of the change; and

incorrect, cross it out and type or print the correct

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the name of the person keeping the payroll records and

information. See also If you change your name or address...

the address where those records will be kept.

on page 3.

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Instructions For Form 941 - Employer'S Quarterly Federal Tax Return - 2006 Page 2

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