December 2025: The Small Business Owner’s HR, Benefits, Payroll, and Tax Compliance Deadlines

Don’t wait until the last minute to meet your business compliance deadlines this December. Spend time scheduling tax payments and taking care of logistics now so you can close out the calendar year with just a little less chaos—and some well-deserved time off! 

Federal holidays

December 25, 2025

Christmas Day

Christmas falls on a Thursday this year, which means some businesses will close on Christmas Day and on Friday, the day after. Whether you’ll be open, closed, or operating on a limited holiday schedule, make sure you have a plan in place. 

December 31, 2025

New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve falls midweek this year, on a Wednesday. Think about how local celebrations and customer preferences will impact your business operations for the holiday, and plan accordingly.  

Tax and payroll compliance deadlines

Payroll tax deposits (for semi-weekly depositors)

Employers who file Forms 940 and 941 have to deposit payroll taxes on different schedules throughout the year. 

If you report more than $50,000 in payroll taxes during the lookback period of July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, you’re considered a semi-weekly depositor, which means you follow the schedule below:

However, if you accumulate $100,000 or more of tax liability in a single day, the IRS says you must deposit the amount by the following business day, regardless of whether you normally deposit on a semi-weekly or monthly basis (more on monthly deposits below).

To learn more about federal payroll tax deposits, read Publication 15. 

Keep in mind that some state and local governments that collect payroll taxes will also expect their own deposits, and those deadlines may be different from the federal ones. For more information, contact your state and local tax agencies directly. 

December 1, 2025

Plan for end-of-the-year tax prep

If you can, it’s smart to get started prepping for tax season in early 2026. Even small actions help: schedule an appointment with your business accountant, purchase any last-minute business equipment or supplies, and organize your expenses and deductions. 

Form 730 filing deadline for October wagers

If you accepted wagers during October and meet the criteria below, you have to file Form 730 by December 1 and pay any taxes due (since the last day of the month in November fell on a weekend). The criteria apply if you:

• are in the business of accepting wagers

• conduct a wagering pool or lottery

• are required to be registered and received wagers for or on behalf of another person, but did not report that person’s name and address

Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in October

If you first used your registered heavy highway motor vehicle in October, you have to file Form 2290 by December 1 (because November 30 fell on a weekend) and pay any corresponding tax. 

December 10, 2025

Employee tip reporting deadline for November 

If your employees earned more than $20 in tips in November, they need to report those tips to you by December 10. See more about tip withholding and reporting requirements here. 

December 15, 2025

Payroll tax deposits for monthly depositors

If your company follows the monthly payroll tax deposit schedule (meaning that you reported less than $50,000 in payroll taxes during the lookback period), then your tax deposit for November payrolls is due on December 15. 

Form 8813 quarterly payment voucher due for partnerships 

If you’re a partnership, you need to file Form 8813 (your quarterly payment voucher) by December 15 and pay any tax due. You can file the form at this address:

Internal Revenue Service Center

P.O. Box 409101

Ogden, UT 84409

For more information on Form 8813, see the IRS instructions here. 

Estimated tax payment due for Q4 for tax-exempt organizations

If you own a tax-exempt organization (like a nonprofit) and expect your tax for the year to be more than $500, you need to pay any estimated tax for Q4 on unrelated business income by December 15. You can use Form 990-W to calculate the amount of estimated tax required. 

Estimated tax payment for Q4 due for corporations 

If your corporation operates on a calendar year, your fourth estimated tax payment of the year is due December 15. 

You can pay online, over the phone, or via mail. For more information on estimated taxes, review Publication 505 or check out worksheet 1120-W. 

December 31, 2025

End of Q4

Today is the last day of Q4 for businesses that run on a calendar year. 

Form 730 filing deadline for November wagers

If you accepted wagers during November, you have to file Form 730—and pay any taxes due—by December 31. 

Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in November

If November was the first time you used your registered heavy highway motor vehicle, you have to file Form 2290 by December 31 and pay any corresponding tax. 

HR compliance deadlines

December 1, 2025

Deadline for sending annual notices to plan participants

When you give retirement benefits to employees, you have to distribute a variety of official notices to employees who opt into the plan. These notices must be handed out every year by December 1 at the latest. Some of the notices include: 

• 401(k) safe harbor annual notice

• Automatic Contribution Arrangement (ACA) Safe Harbor notice

• Automatic enrollment notice

• Participant fee disclosure

• Qualified default investment alternative (QDIA) notice

Review employee handbooks and business policies

December is a great time to review your employee handbooks and workplace policies ahead of the new year—then make any critical changes. Check out our Gusto guide to creating a comprehensive handbook with thoughtful, equitable workplace policies.

Need some inspiration? Here’s a list of creative employee handbook templates. 

December 15, 2025

Extended deadline for distributing Summary Annual Report to plan participants

A Summary Annual Report (SAR) explains your company’s retirement plan and other plan details reported in your Form 5500. If you received an extension for distributing SARs to your employees, whether by filing Form 5558 or Form 7704, your new deadline for sending SARs to plan participants is December 15.

December 31, 2025

Last day to conduct nondiscrimination testing for benefit plans

If you offer 401(k) plans, 125 Premium Only Plans (POPs), and flexible spending accounts (FSAs), you’re required to conduct nondiscrimination testing by December 31 for calendar-year plans. This process helps ensure that you’re able to offer benefits on the same terms to all eligible employees at your business, not just employees who are highly compensated. 

Deadline for correcting a failed ADP/ACP test and adopting discretionary amendments

If you need to correct your retirement plan as a result of any Actual Deferral Percentage (ADP) or Actual Contribution Percentage (ACP) testing failures, December 31 is the last day to do it if you want to maintain your qualified status. These changes include:

• Correcting a failed ADP/ACP test

• Processing corrective distributions for failed ADP/ACP testing (note that a 10% excise tax may apply)

• Amending plan documents for any discretionary changes implemented during the 2025 plan year

Deadline to change safe harbor status for retirement plans

If you want to make safe harbor status changes to your retirement plans, those must be made by December 31. This includes:

• Changing a traditional 401(k) plan to a safe harbor plan for the prior calendar year (if your company agrees to at least a 4% nonelective contribution)

• Removing a plan’s safe harbor status for the 2026 plan year or converting an existing plan to a safe harbor plan

Deadline for Required Minimum Distributions due under IRC Section 401(a)(9)

Plan participants who were age 73 or older on or after January 1, 2023, must receive their Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)—the minimum amount an eligible account holder must withdraw each year—by December 31.