How to Tell Which IRS Payroll Tax Forms to File (940 vs. 941 vs. 944)
Form 941 is the quarterly return for employers that pay wages subject to federal income tax withholding or Social Security and Medicare taxes (Instructions for Form 941, Rev. 03/2026). Form 940 is the annual return for federal unemployment (FUTA) tax. Form 944 replaces Form 941 only when the IRS notifies you in writing that you are an annual filer, and Form 944 filers still file Form 940.
How Do Forms 941, 944, and 940 Fit Together?
Form 941 or Form 944 reports withheld income tax plus Social Security and Medicare taxes, and Form 940 reports FUTA. Forms W-2 and W-3 report wages at year end, and deposits move the money the returns report.
Form
What it reports
Who files it
How often
When it is due
Form 941
Withheld income tax plus employer and employee Social Security and Medicare taxes
Employers paying wages subject to withholding or Social Security and Medicare taxes
Once each quarter
The last day of the month after quarter end, or 10 days later if all deposits were timely
Form 944
The same taxes, reported once a year
Only employers the IRS has notified in writing
Once each year
January 31, or 10 days later if all deposits were timely
Form 940
Federal unemployment (FUTA) tax, which only employers pay
Employers meeting the $1,500-per-quarter or 20-week test, including Form 944 filers, with separate tests for household and farm employers
Once each year
January 31, with 10 additional days if all FUTA tax was deposited when due
Forms W-2 and W-3
Employees’ year-end wages and withheld taxes
Employers that paid wages during the year
Once each year
February 1, 2027 for 2026 wages, for both employee copies and filing
Who Has to File Federal Employment Tax Returns?
You file federal employment tax returns when you pay wages subject to federal income tax withholding or Social Security and Medicare taxes (Form 941 instructions).
What you need first.
* Locate your Employer Identification Number (EIN).
* List every worker you pay and how each is classified.
* Gather quarterly wage totals and any IRS letters about your filing form.
1. Classify each worker with the IRS common-law test (IRS common-law employee page).
2. Check your payroll records for wages subject to federal income tax withholding or Social Security and Medicare taxes, the Form 941 trigger.
3. Route household employees to Schedule H and agricultural employees to Form 943, though a household employer that files Form 941 for business employees may include household employees on it (Publication 15 (2026)).
4. File one Form 941 per quarter per EIN, however many locations or divisions you operate.
5. Check the seasonal employer box on line 18 of every Form 941 you file as a seasonal employer, or the IRS expects a return for each quarter.
6. Write down your determination and keep employment tax records for at least four years.
What a correct result looks like. A written filer-status record lists your classified workers and the returns you owe, and it sits with your payroll files.
How the IRS Decides Between Form 941 and Form 944
The IRS decides by written notice, and you cannot elect Form 944 on your own (Form 944 instructions (2025 edition)). Gather your projected or prior-year annual liability and any written IRS notice about Form 944 or Form 941.
1. Add the federal income tax withheld to the employer and employee shares of Social Security and Medicare taxes to get your annual liability.
2. Compare that total with the $1,000 annual line.
3. Check your IRS mail for a written Form 944 notice, which is the only way to become a Form 944 filer (IRS page on filing employment taxes annually).
4. File Form 941 if you have no notice.
5. Request a switch in either direction in the first-quarter window, by April 1 by phone at 800-829-4933 or by a written request postmarked by mid-March (Form 941 instructions and Form 944 instructions).
6. Wait for the written IRS notice before you change forms.
A Form 944 filer whose liability grows past $1,000 keeps filing Form 944 until the IRS notifies it otherwise. Growth can trigger deposit requirements without changing the form.
Form 940 Filing Triggers and How FUTA Is Figured
Form 940 is a separate annual return for FUTA tax that you file alongside Form 941 or Form 944. Start with each employee’s wages for the year and by quarter, plus your state unemployment tax account number and payment history.
1. Apply the filing test of $1,500 or more in wages in any calendar quarter, or at least one employee for some part of a day in any 20 or more different weeks, in the current or preceding year (Publication 15 (2026)).
2. Apply 6.0% to the first $7,000 paid to each employee for 2026, and note that a state wage base may differ.
3. Apply a credit of up to 5.4% when state unemployment tax was paid in full, on time, and on the same wages in a state that is not a credit reduction state. That leaves 0.6%, or $42 per employee at most.
4. Check the Department of Labor credit reduction list and complete Schedule A (Form 940) when it applies (Form 940 instructions). As of October 2026, the Department of Labor’s potential 2026 list names California and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the final 2026 credit reductions are not set until November 10, 2026. The 2025 reductions were California at 1.2% and the U.S. Virgin Islands at 4.5% (Department of Labor).
5. Compare each quarter’s FUTA liability, carryforward included, with $500, depositing by the last day of the month after quarter end only when it is more than $500.
6. File Form 940 by January 31, which for the 2026 return is Monday, February 1, 2027, with 10 additional days if all FUTA tax was deposited when due.
Household employers test at $1,000 in cash wages per quarter and may report FUTA on Schedule H, while farm employers test at $20,000 in cash wages per quarter or 10 or more farmworkers in 20 or more different weeks and still file Form 940 (Publication 15 (2026)).
Where Do Forms W-2 and W-3 Fit In?
Forms W-2 and W-3 are year-end wage reporting, not the trigger for Form 941.
1. Prepare Forms W-2 and W-3 from each employee’s full-year wages and withholding totals in your payroll records, following the 2026 General Instructions (General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2026)).
2. E-file if you file at least 10 information returns in total, with W-2s counted in the aggregate. Forms 940, 941, and 944 do not count toward that total under Treasury Regulation 301.6011-2.
3. Review the 2026 Form W-2 changes. Box 14 splits into box 14a (Other) and box 14b (Treasury Tipped Occupation Code), and box 12 adds code TP (cash tips reported to the employer), code TT (qualified overtime compensation), and code TA (employer contributions to a Trump account under a section 128 program) (General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2026)).
Federal Payroll Tax Deposit Frequency
Form 941 filers deposit monthly or semiweekly, and the lookback period, a four-quarter window of Form 941 line 12 totals, decides which. Depositing the taxes alone does not report them or relieve you of the requirement to file a return (IRS Employment tax due dates page).
1. Find your lookback period, which for 2026 is July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025, measured on Form 941 line 12 (Publication 15 (2026), as of October 2026). A Form 941 filer that filed Form 944 in 2024 or 2025 uses calendar year 2024.
2. Add the four quarters. A total of $50,000 or less means monthly deposits by day 15 of the following month, and a total of more than $50,000 means semiweekly deposits due the following Wednesday or Friday.
3. Deposit monthly in your first calendar year as a new employer, or in your first and second calendar years if you file Form 944.
4. Apply the $100,000 next-day rule to both schedules, depositing by the next business day once $100,000 or more accumulates on any day. A monthly depositor reaching $100,000 becomes semiweekly for at least the rest of that year and the following year.
5. Follow Form 944’s own tiers if you file it. Annual line 9 tax under $2,500 means paying with the return. $2,500 or more for the year but under $2,500 for the quarter means depositing by the last day of the month after quarter end. $2,500 or more for a quarter means monthly or semiweekly deposits (Form 944 instructions).
6. Pay with a timely Form 941 instead of depositing when line 12 is under $2,500 for the current or prior quarter and no $100,000 obligation arose in the current quarter.
Form 941 and Form 940 deposits can go through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS), IRS Direct Pay for businesses, or the IRS business tax account, all free, or through a provider depositing for you, but not by card (Publication 15 (2026)).
Failure-to-deposit penalties come in tiers of 2%, 5%, 10%, and 15% that are not cumulative (IRS failure-to-deposit penalty page), and a required deposit paid with the return draws 10% (Publication 15 (2026)). Relief such as reasonable cause or First Time Abate may be available but is never guaranteed, and as of October 2026 the IRS describes First Time Abate as transitioning to Automatic Exemption from Penalty (IRS penalty relief page).
What a correct result looks like. A documented schedule, monthly, semiweekly, or the Form 944 tier, with the $100,000 next-day rule noted beside it.
Which Dates Go on Your 2026 and Early 2027 Filing Calendar?
The dates below cover Forms 941, 940, and 944 due from November 2026 through April 2027 and the monthly deposits for October through December 2026 wages, as of October 2026 (IRS Employment tax due dates page and Publication 15 (2026)). Monthly depositors follow the same day-15 rule in later months, moving to the next business day when it falls on a weekend or legal holiday, and semiweekly deposits follow each payday.
Date
What is due
Why the date falls here
Monday, November 2, 2026
Form 941 for the third quarter, or Tuesday, November 10, 2026 if every deposit was on time and in full
October 31 is a Saturday
Monday, November 2, 2026
Third-quarter FUTA deposit, if liability with carryforward is more than $500
October 31 is a Saturday
Monday, November 16, 2026
Monthly deposit for October wages
November 15 is a Sunday
Tuesday, December 15, 2026
Monthly deposit for November wages
December 15 is a Tuesday
Friday, January 15, 2027
Monthly deposit for December wages
January 15 is a Friday
Monday, February 1, 2027
Form 941 for the fourth quarter, Form 940, Form 944, and any fourth-quarter FUTA deposit
January 31 is a Sunday
Wednesday, February 10, 2027
Later date for Forms 941, 940, and 944 if every deposit was on time and in full
February 10 is a Wednesday
Friday, April 30, 2027
Form 941 for the first quarter and any first-quarter FUTA deposit, or Monday, May 10, 2027 for Form 941 if every deposit was on time and in full
April 30 is a Friday
Only legal holidays in the District of Columbia move deposit dates. For example, a semiweekly payday of Friday, November 6, 2026 is normally due Wednesday, November 11, but Veterans Day moves the deposit to Thursday, November 12.
1. Enter every date that applies to you into one payroll calendar and set reminders at least five business days ahead.
2. Choose how you will file Forms 940, 941, and 944, noting that e-filing is optional and encouraged (Form 941 instructions).
3. Confirm who files and deposits for you, because your responsibility to the IRS stays with you even when a reporting agent files or deposits on your behalf (IRS third-party arrangements page).
AsureCentral covers payroll tax filing for growing employers who run payroll themselves. AsureWorks runs on AsureCentral, with Asure specialists handling payroll, including payroll tax filing and reporting. Either way you remain the employer and generally stay accountable to the IRS, and with AsureWorks there is no co-employment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to file both Form 940 and Form 941?
Yes. Form 941 or Form 944 reports withheld income tax plus Social Security and Medicare taxes, while Form 940 reports FUTA tax, so each return is required separately. A Form 944 filer still files Form 940 (Publication 15 (2026)).
Do sole proprietors and LLCs have to file Form 941?
Yes, when they pay wages subject to federal income tax withholding or Social Security and Medicare taxes (Form 941 instructions). A sole proprietor with employees meets that trigger, and so does an LLC that pays such wages.
Which employers do not file Form 941?
Employers that have filed a final return, employers whose only employees are household employees (Schedule H), employers whose only wages are farm wages (Form 943), and employers the IRS has notified to file Form 944 do not file Form 941. An employer with both farm and nonfarm workers files Form 941 for the nonfarm wages (Publication 15 (2026)). Seasonal employers need not file for quarters with no wages but must check the seasonal box on every Form 941 they file.
What is the threshold for Form 940?
You owe Form 940 if you meet the $1,500-per-quarter or 20-week test in the current or preceding year (Publication 15 (2026)). FUTA applies 6.0% to the first $7,000 per employee, less a credit of up to 5.4% for timely state unemployment tax.
Can I choose to file Form 944 instead of Form 941?
No. The IRS decides by written notice (Form 944 instructions). You may request a switch in the first-quarter window, then wait for the written notice before changing forms.
What should I do first to get my federal payroll tax filings in order?
Write down your filer-status determination, check your IRS mail for any written Form 944 notice, pull the Form 941 line 12 totals for the lookback quarters, and enter every due date from the calendar above into one payroll calendar. Talk to an Asure expert about AsureCentral or AsureWorks to decide who handles your payroll tax filing.
