Annual federal unemployment tax return

File Form 940 and pay any FUTA tax still owed for the previous year.

When: By January 31 each year.
Agency: IRS
Form: Form 940
Applies to: Every company and every exempt organization other than 501(c)(3) public charities and private foundations in the United States, with 1 or more employees.
If missed: 5% of the unpaid tax for each month late, up to 25%
Source: www.irs.gov, read October 22, 2026

Jay explains

Federal unemployment tax is an employer only tax of 6% on the first $7,000 paid to each employee, reduced to 0.6% for employers that pay state unemployment tax on time. Form 940 reports it once a year, by January 31. Quarterly deposits are due during the year once the liability passes $500. An organization exempt under section 501(c)(3) owes no federal unemployment tax and files no Form 940; other exempt organizations, such as 501(c)(4) and 501(c)(6) groups, do.

Next dates

For a calendar year company. Weekend and holiday dates are moved to the next business day, as the IRS does.

February 1, 2027
January 31, 2028

A payroll provider normally prepares and files this. Obligare shows it anyway, marked as the provider's, because the company stays liable if it is missed.

Also in the federal calendar

Federal corporate income tax return Federal S corporation return Federal partnership return Business income on the owner's personal return Nonresident owner's US return, if one is owed Annual electronic notice for small exempt organizations Short annual return of an exempt organization Annual return of an exempt organization Annual return of a private foundation Exempt organization business income tax return Written acknowledgments to donors Corporate estimated tax payment

See it on your company's calendar

Your company's compliance calendar

Three answers to start. Refine it after.

What kind of organization is it?

An LLC's tax treatment decides which federal return it files. Choose the line that matches yours. Nonprofits are covered too.

State of formation

Employees

Count everyone on payroll. An S corporation's working owners are employees: they are paid a salary.

Where is it based? The state of the office, or of most of the people

A company based outside its state of formation is registered in both and files in both.

More about the company: other states, payroll, dates, abroad

Company name

Date registered in each other state

Optional. Some states key their report to the day you registered there rather than your date of formation; without it, the formation date stands in and the calendar says so.

Who runs payroll?

Fiscal year ends in

Date of formation

Needed for states that key filings to the anniversary of formation.

Annual revenue

Some taxes start at a revenue threshold.

We pay independent contractors We offer a retirement plan (401(k), SIMPLE, SEP)

Outside the United States We hold a bank or financial account outside the US A person or company outside the US owns 25% or more of it We own 10% or more of a company outside the US We pay people or companies outside the US

Each adds the FinCEN or IRS form that comes with it: the FBAR, Form 5472, Form 5471, Forms 1042 and 1042-S.

No account needed. Nothing is stored until you save it.

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