NYS Department of Labor quarterly employer taxes - which form do I need for annual federal unemployment tax return?
I'm trying to figure out which form I need to file for my annual federal unemployment tax return. My business has employees in New York and I've been paying quarterly NYS Department of Labor taxes, but now I'm confused about the annual federal requirements. I've been getting different answers from my accountant and online resources. Can someone clarify which specific form is used for the annual federal unemployment tax return? I want to make sure I'm compliant with both state and federal requirements.
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Ali Anderson
You need Form 940 for your annual federal unemployment tax return. This is separate from your quarterly NYS Department of Labor filings. The 940 covers your FUTA tax liability for the entire year and is due by January 31st (or February 10th if you deposited all FUTA tax when due).
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Sean Matthews
•Thank you! So Form 940 is the annual one, and my quarterly NYS Department of Labor payments help reduce what I owe on the 940?
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Zadie Patel
Yes, exactly right. Your state unemployment tax payments to NYS Department of Labor give you a credit against your federal FUTA tax on Form 940. As long as you're paying into an approved state program (which New York is), you get up to a 5.4% credit, which reduces your effective FUTA rate from 6.0% to 0.6% on the first $7,000 of each employee's wages.
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Sean Matthews
•That makes so much more sense now. I was wondering why the rates seemed different between state and federal.
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A Man D Mortal
•Just make sure you file Form 940 even if you don't owe anything after the credit. The IRS still wants to see the return.
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Declan Ramirez
I had trouble reaching someone at the NYS Department of Labor when I had questions about how my state payments would affect my federal filing. If you need to talk to someone there directly, I found claimyr.com really helpful - they have a service that gets you through to actual agents without waiting on hold forever. There's a demo video at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. Saved me hours of trying to get through their phone lines.
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Emma Morales
•Really? I've been trying to reach NYS Department of Labor for weeks about my employer account. Did they actually help you get specific tax information?
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Declan Ramirez
•Yeah, I was able to speak with someone who clarified exactly how the state credit works on the federal return. Much better than guessing or waiting for callbacks that never came.
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Katherine Hunter
dont forget you also need to file your quarterly 941s throughout the year, those are different from the annual 940 and your state stuff with NYS Department of Labor
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Zadie Patel
•Good point - Form 941 is for income tax withholding and Social Security/Medicare taxes, filed quarterly. Form 940 is specifically for unemployment taxes, filed annually. Two completely different things but both required.
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