Tips for Small Business Owners for Filing their Form 941 for Q1, 2024

Here are some tips for small business owners to help them file Form 941 for the first quarter!

Many employers use to file Form 941 every quarter, but this form has undergone several changes in the past year. For small business owners, the Form 941 deadline for the first quarter of 2024 is April 30th, 2024, which is only two weeks away. If you are a small business owner, you may feel the pressure of this upcoming deadline.

Just ask yourself the following questions about the business:

Is your business required to File Form 941 for Q1?

In general, if your business pays wages to employees and withholds social security, Medicare, and income taxes from these wages, then it is generally required to file Form 941. Even if your business didn’t pay any wages in the first quarter (Q1), you are still most likely required to file this form quarterly if your business was open for operations during the quarter.

However, there are a few exceptions to this rule:

If your business is in the agriculture industry and you employ farm workers specifically, you may be required to file Form 943 annually rather than 941 quarterly.
Similarly, if you are a household employer and pay your employees a certain amount, you may not be required to file a Form 941. It’s always a good idea to check with the IRS if you have questions about your business’s filing requirements.
Suppose you are a seasonal employer, particularly one that operates during the spring months. In that case, you may be required to file Form 941 for Q1 if you operated the business or paid wages during January, February, and March.

What’s the Business Deposit Schedule like?

Suppose your business reports more than $50,000 in tax liability or accumulates more than $100,000 in tax liability in any single day during the quarter. In that case, the IRS considers it a semi-weekly depositor.

As a semi-weekly depositor, your business should make deposits for employment taxes for payments made on Wednesday, Thursday, and/or Friday by the following Wednesday and taxes paid on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and/or Tuesday by the following Friday.

It’s important to note that semi-weekly depositors must complete and attach Schedule B to their Form 941. 941 Schedule B provides the IRS with a breakdown of your business’s tax liability (not the IRS deposit) for each day of the quarter.

Make sure to give yourself plenty of time to file!
Allow yourself sufficient time to file your taxes. Although it may seem obvious, it is still worth stressing. Even if you felt that completing the 941 last quarter was a breeze, don’t save this quarter’s filing for the last minute. The new 941 Form For Q1 has many changes that you will need to familiarize yourself with, which will take some time.

New Changes in Form 941 for the first quarter of 2024 and beyond

Keeping up-to-date with the latest changes to Form 941 is essential for a successful start to the new tax year. With Q1 2024 around the corner, it’s important to note some significant updates:

Social Security Tax Limits: There have been some changes to Social Security tax limits. The wage base limit for Social Security is now $168,600. The tax rate for Social Security is 6.2%.
Expanded Tax Coverage: Starting in 2024, Social Security and Medicare taxes will apply to household workers who earn $2,700 or more and election workers who receive $2,300 or more.
Elimination of Tax Credits: COVID-19-related tax credits for qualified sick and family leave wages are no longer available on Form 941. This means that specific lines on the 941 draft form have been removed, including Part I, Lines 11a-11g, and Part I, Lines 13a-13i. Part III, Lines 19-28, have also been removed.
Implementation of Form 941-SP: Form 941-PR and Form 941-SS have been discontinued for 2024. Instead, they are being replaced with Form 941-SP (Spanish).

Take Advantage of TaxBandits Features!

Here at TaxBandits, our team works hard to develop features that simplify your filing process, whether you are a tax professional or a small business owner. Here are a few to remember when you begin filing your Form 941 for the Q1 deadline!

Bulk Uploads
- Are you a tax professional filing for multiple clients? Make sure you check out our 941 bulk upload feature! This allows you to upload Form 941 data for multiple clients at once, so there is no need to file Form 941s one at a time. You can upload your data using our template or your own and then generate all of your clients’ 941s!
Prepaid Credits
- At TaxBandits, we love prepaid credits for a reason: They simplify your e-filing process and save you money! Prepaid credits never expire and can be used across multiple EINs. When you have a balance of prepaid credits, there is no need to enter credit card information each time you transmit a form. Just click transmit, and we deduct a credit. It doesn’t get easier than that!
Client Management
- Our robust client management capabilities simplify client communication and collaboration. Easily organize client information, securely share documents, and facilitate real-time communication through our integrated portal.
Team Management
- Our intuitive staff management tools allow you to organize and oversee your team’s activities efficiently. Assign roles, manage access controls, and streamline collaboration to enhance productivity.
Secure filing with instant status updates
- TaxBandits provides a comprehensive solution for e-filing 941 forms with ease, accuracy, and security. Stay updated on your return status with instant status updates or email notifications.