It's the beginning of July already; the summer seems to be slipping away fast! July federal business tax reports and payments due:
- July 15 - The monthly payroll tax deposit is due, unless you have a large payroll and deposit semi-weekly
- End of July - Second quarter federal unemployment taxes (FUTA) are due. If your FUTA tax liability in any one quarter is more than $500, you must make a deposit by the last day of the month after the end of the quarter. In this case, the deposit for the second quarter (April, May, June) would normally have to be made by July 31, but since that day falls on a weekend in 2010, the FUTA deposit is due August 2.
More About Federal Unemployment Taxes
All employers, even those with only one employee, must report and pay unemployment taxes if they:
- Paid wages of $1,500 or more to employees in any calendar quarter, OR
- Had one or more employees for at least some part of a day in any 20 or more different weeks.
These taxes are used to pay unemployment benefits for laid off workers (not for those who leave voluntarily). The amount of the tax each employer must pay is based on (a) the number of employees and (b) total wages of these employees; the federal unemployment tax rate is 8%.
What About State Unemployment Taxes?
Every U.S. state has an unemployment tax fund into which you must make payments. To find out more about your state unemployment tax, go to this Department of Labor page, click on your state, and look for the office of "workforce development" or state labor department. This department is different from the one that pays unemployment benefits to unemployed workers.