What are the 2013 Changes to IRS Form 941?

Question: What are the 2013 Changes to IRS Form 941?

Answer:

New Form 941 for 2013: an Overview
Form 941 for 2013 payroll taxes has been changed to reflect recent changes in law:

• The first change is to increase the amount due for Social Security tax for employees by 2%, because the 2011 and 2012 payroll tax cut has expired.
  
• The second change is to add a line for additional Medicare tax that must withheld from higher income employees.

The 2013 version of form 941 has been issued by the IRS. The form includes these changes: (a) the change in Social Security tax rate (line 5a) from .104 in 2012 t0 .124 in 2013, (b)the addition of line 5D for the additional Medicare tax.

IRS Form 941-Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Form
Form 941 is used by employers to submit payroll taxes due from both employees and employers. It includes:

• Information on payroll taxes (Social Security taxes, Medicare taxes, and federal income taxes) withheld from employee paychecks and
  
• Employer payments of payroll taxes from employee withholding and for the employer portion of FICA taxes

Form 941 also includes a calculation of total amounts due for the quarter from both employees and employers, and it shows discrepancies between what has been paid and what is owed. Any over-payments or under-payments are due along with the Form 941, using a Form 941-V payment voucher.

Changes in Form 941 for 2013
Two changes in Form 941-2013 are the result of law changes from the American Taxpayer Relief Act, signed on January 4, 2013.

Increased Social Security Tax for Employees
The payroll tax cut program temporarily reduced the Social Security tax for employees 2%, from 6.2% of gross wages to 4.2%. The new employee Social Security tax rate for 2013 and beyond is back to 6.2%. Thus, the total Social Security tax which must be collected from employees and employers is 12.4% of gross wages. Form 941 for 2013 reflects this change, on Lines 5a and 5b.

Additional Withholding for Additional Medicare Tax
Additional Medicare tax is due from high-income employees and self-employed individuals for income beginning January 1, 2013. Form 941 for 2013 has been amended to include an additional line 5d "Taxable wages and tips subject to Additional Medicare Tax withholding." The additional amount is 0.9%. The additional amount must be withheld on income above $200,000 in 2013.

The additional Medicare tax is based on the income filing status and income level of the employee:

• Married filing jointly - $250,000
  
• Married filing separately - $125,000
  
• Single - $200,000
  
• Head of household (with qualifying person) - $200,000
  
• Qualifying widow(er) with dependent child - $200,000

Submitting Form 941
Form 941 must be submitted to the IRS the end of the month after the end of each quarter. The first due date for Form 941 for 2013 is January 31, 2013, for the last quarter (October, November, December) of 2012. The changes to Form 941 for 2013 do not affect the January 31, 2013 due date. Additional due dates for Form 941 in 2013:

• April 30, for the quarter beginning January 1, 2013, and ending March 31, 2013
  
• July 31, for the quarter beginning April 1, 2013, and ending June 30, 2013
  
• October 31, for the quarter beginning July 1, 2013, and ending September 30, 2013
  
• January 31, 2014, for the quarter beginning October 1, 2013, and ending December 31, 2013.

If the calculations on Form 941 show an underpayment, that payment may be made with Form 941, using payment voucher 941-V. Other payroll tax payments must be made electronically, through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). Read more about how to submit payroll taxes to the IRS.

Here is the IRS document information on Form 941.

More about Form 941-Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return.