Form 941: Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return

You file Form 941 if you pay wages subject to federal income tax withholding or to social security and Medicare taxes. You report the wages you paid, the tips your employees reported to you, the federal income tax you withheld, both the employer and employee share of social security and Medicare taxes, Additional Medicare Tax withheld, current quarter adjustments, and the qualified small business payroll tax credit for increasing research activities. Once you file your first return, you keep filing each quarter unless you filed a final return or an exception applies.

• Told by the IRS to file Form 944? File that once a year instead.
• Seasonal employers skip quarters with no wages and check the box on line 18 every time they file.
• Employers of household employees don't usually file. See Pub. 926 and Schedule H (Form 1040).
• Employers of farm employees use Form 943 for agricultural wages.
• Backup withholding and pensions go on Form 945. Unemployment tax goes on Form 940.

Your Form 941 is due by the last day of the month that follows the end of the quarter. Quarter one covers January through March, ends March 31, and the return is due April 30. Quarter two ends June 30 and is due July 31. Quarter three ends September 30 and is due October 31. Quarter four ends December 31 and is due January 31. If you made timely deposits in full payment of your taxes, you may file by the 10th day of the second month after the quarter, so May 10 for quarter one.

• A due date that falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday moves to the next business day.
• A paper return counts as on time if it is properly addressed, has enough postage, and is postmarked by the due date.
• File your first Form 941 for the quarter in which you first paid wages subject to these taxes.
• File only once for each quarter. If you filed electronically, don't also mail a paper copy.

The IRS encourages you to file electronically. If you mail a paper return, the address depends on your location and on whether you include a payment. Every paper return sent with a payment goes to Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 932100, Louisville, KY 40293-2100. Returns without a payment go to Kansas City or Ogden based on where you are. If you pay by EFT, credit card, or debit card, use the without a payment address and don't file Form 941-V. Don't send Form 941 or any payments to the SSA.

• Without a payment, Kansas City, MO 64999-0005: Connecticut, Delaware, DC, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
• Without a payment, Ogden, UT 84201-0005: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
• No legal residence or principal place of business in any state, including American Samoa, Guam, the CNMI, the USVI, and Puerto Rico: P.O. Box 409101, Ogden, UT 84409 without a payment.
• Exempt organizations and federal, state, local, and Indian tribal governmental entities use Ogden, UT 84201-0005 without a payment, wherever they are.

Aggregate return filers now identify themselves in a new Aggregate Return Filers Only section at the top, checking section 3504 agent, CPEO, or other third party. The IRS now issues Form 941 refunds by direct deposit, so lines 15c through 15e collect your routing number, account type, and account number. You can still apply an overpayment to your next return by checking that box on line 15b. The IRS also asks you to pay any balance due electronically. Form 941 return transcripts for 2023 and later are available through your IRS business tax account.

• Social security tax is 6.2% each for you and the employee, and the wage base limit is $184,500.
• Medicare tax is 1.45% each for you and the employee, unchanged from 2025, with no wage base limit.
• Social security and Medicare taxes apply to household workers you pay $3,000 or more in cash wages in 2026, and to election workers paid $2,500 or more.
• The IRS expects this March 2026 revision to cover the second, third, and fourth quarters of 2026 too. Don't use an earlier revision for 2026.

Type or print your EIN, name, trade name, and address above Part 1, and check the box for the quarter you're reporting. Use the business name you used when you applied for your EIN, and leave the trade name line blank if it matches. Part 1 covers wages, withholding, and the tax math. Part 2 covers your deposit schedule and liability. Part 3 asks whether your business closed and whether you're a seasonal employer. Part 4 is the third-party designee. Part 5 is your signature. You must complete both pages and sign page 2.

• Don't enter dollar signs or decimal points. Always show cents, even when they're zero.
• Leave any zero field blank except lines 1, 2, and 12.
• Show negative amounts with a minus sign when your software allows it.
• Put your name and EIN on both pages and on every attachment, along with "Form 941" and the tax year and quarter.
• Semiweekly schedule depositors complete Schedule B (Form 941) and attach it. Monthly schedule depositors don't file it.

If line 12 is more than line 13, the difference is your balance due on line 14. You don't have to pay if line 14 is under $1. Pay by EFT if you were required to make federal tax deposits. If you weren't required to deposit, you may also pay by credit card, debit card, check, money order, or electronic funds withdrawal. Paying by check means completing Form 941-V and enclosing it with your return. If you can't pay in full, you can apply online for an installment agreement when you owe $25,000 or less and can pay the liability in full in 24 months.

• If line 13 is more than line 12, enter the overpayment on line 15a. Never make an entry on both line 14 and line 15a.
• Check one box on line 15b. If you check neither or both, the IRS generally applies the overpayment to your next return.
• Fill in lines 15c through 15e for direct deposit. Skipping them may delay a refund you asked for.
• An overpayment under $1 comes back to you only if you ask in writing.