When Is Form 941 Payment Due? Deadlines for Employers
Ensure your business meets federal payroll tax obligations. Discover how to determine your Form 941 payment schedule and avoid penalties for timely compliance.
Employers must navigate various federal tax obligations. Form 941, the Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return, is used by businesses to report and remit specific payroll taxes. It details federal income tax withheld from employee wages, along with both the employee and employer portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes. Its timely submission is a fundamental requirement for businesses with employees.
Understanding Form 941 Payment Obligations
Form 941 encompasses several types of taxes employers collect and remit to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). A primary component is federal income tax withholding, which employers deduct from employee wages. This ensures income tax liability is paid incrementally throughout the year.
Beyond income tax, Form 941 also covers Social Security and Medicare taxes, collectively known as Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes. These taxes fund Social Security, which provides benefits for retirees, the disabled, and survivors, and Medicare, which funds health insurance for the elderly and disabled. Both the employer and employee contribute to FICA taxes.
Employers withhold the employee’s share of FICA taxes from paychecks and pay their own matching share. For 2025, the Social Security tax rate is 6.2% for both the employee and employer, applied up to a wage base limit of $176,100. The Medicare tax rate is 1.45% for both the employee and employer, with no wage base limit.
Determining Your Tax Deposit Schedule
The frequency of federal tax deposits for Form 941 liabilities depends on an employer’s total tax liability during a specific “lookback period.” This period covers the 12 months from July 1 of the second preceding calendar year to June 30 of the preceding calendar year. For example, to determine the deposit schedule for 2025, the lookback period is July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.
Employers fall into one of two deposit schedules: monthly or semi-weekly. A business qualifies for the monthly deposit schedule if its total tax liability during the lookback period was $50,000 or less. Under this schedule, taxes accumulated during a calendar month are due on the 15th day of the following month.
The semi-weekly deposit schedule applies to employers who reported more than $50,000 in taxes during the lookback period. For these employers, specific due dates depend on the day wages are paid. Taxes accumulated on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday must be deposited by the following Wednesday. Taxes accumulated on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday are due by the following Friday.
The $100,000 next-day deposit rule overrides the regular monthly or semi-weekly schedule. If an employer accumulates $100,000 or more in tax liability on any single day, they must deposit the tax by the close of the next business day. If this rule is triggered, the employer automatically becomes a semi-weekly depositor for the remainder of the current calendar year and the entire following calendar year.
Quarterly Filing and Payment Deadlines
While tax deposits are made frequently based on the determined schedule, Form 941 itself is filed quarterly. There are four calendar quarters, each with a specific filing deadline.
The filing due dates for Form 941 are the last day of the month following the end of each quarter. Form 941 is due by April 30 for the first quarter (January 1 to March 31), July 31 for the second quarter (April 1 to June 30), October 31 for the third quarter (July 1 to September 30), and January 31 of the following year for the fourth quarter (October 1 to December 31). If all taxes were deposited on time for the quarter, employers generally receive an additional 10 calendar days to file the return.
These quarterly filing dates are distinct from the deposit due dates. Deposits for a given quarter must be made throughout the quarter according to the monthly or semi-weekly schedule. If a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the deadline extends to the next business day.
Methods for Making Federal Tax Deposits
Employers are required to make federal tax deposits via electronic funds transfer (EFT). The primary method for these deposits is the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). EFTPS is a free service provided by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, offering a secure and convenient way to remit payments online or by phone.
To use EFTPS, businesses must first enroll. Once enrolled, payments can be scheduled up to 365 days in advance. Payments must be initiated by 8:00 PM Eastern Time the day before the due date to be considered timely.
Electronic payment is mandatory. Alternative methods like check or money order are only considered in very limited circumstances, such as EFTPS unavailability.