Tax season is in full-swing and we are answering many questions from our household clients regarding W-2s. As a result, we thought it be beneficial to focus this month’s blog on some of them. Hopefully, after reading our responses, we’ll be able to save you some time and help clarify any of your concerns.
Q: Does my employee receive a 1099 form?
A: No. Household employees are not independent contractors. They receive W-2 forms. View more information on this topic.
Q: What is the deadline for giving the W-2 to my employee?
A: The W-2 form needed to be postmarked by January 31 of this year.
Q: I paid my employee directly for the first 4 months of the year. Are those wages included on the W-2?
A: Yes. You should include all wages (on your own or with the assistance of GTM (or other payroll provider) on one W-2 and not more than one.
Q: My employee was paid a net amount. Why are the wages on the W-2 higher than what I paid her?
A: The W-2 form reports “Gross” wages paid to an employee, not net. Even if you negotiated and agreed upon paying a net wage, your employee’s Social Security, Medicare and possibly Federal and State income taxes are added on top of the net in order to calculate the “Gross” wages that are reported as his/her income.
Q: When do I have to file the W-2 and W-3 with the Social Security administration?
A: If you have a payroll provider, you should first check with them to make sure they are not doing this on your behalf. If you have to do it on your own, the deadline for submitting the forms electronically is 2/29/2012. The deadline for filing a paper copy is 4/2/2012.
Q: What do I do with the Schedule H form?
A. This form is included with your personal income tax return. You should provide a copy to your accountant or should include the information, if filing your own return.
Q: What is reported on a Schedule H form?
A. A Schedule H form reports total gross wages, your employee’s portion and your employer portion of social security and Medicare taxes, your federal unemployment tax, and contributions made to your state for unemployment insurance.
Q: My employee was on disability for a few months. Are those wages included in the W-2 form?
A: Yes. The disability company should have provided a report of your employees’ income that was paid out to her. You should provide this report to your payroll provider to be included in your employee’s W-2 wages.
As always, please contact us anytime at householdpayroll@gtm.com or 888-432-7972 if you have additional questions or would like to learn more about GTM Payroll Services Inc.
