July is the first month of Q3, which means there are a lot of key compliance deadlines you need to watch out for. Mark these HR, benefits, payroll, and tax compliance dates in your calendar so you don’t get behind as you keep up with summertime operations.
Federal holidays
July 4, 2024
Independence Day
Fourth of July falls on a Thursday this year, which means many workplaces will close for a long weekend. Whether you’re planning to take a few days off or stay open amidst the celebration madness, it’s a good idea to get prepared ahead of time.
Tax and payroll compliance deadlines
Payroll tax deposits (for semi-weekly depositors)
Employers have to file Forms 940 and 941 to deposit payroll taxes at different frequencies throughout the year.
If you report more than $50,000 in payroll taxes during the lookback period of July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023, you’re considered a semi-weekly depositor, which means you have to follow the schedule below:
| If payday for your employees is on… | Deposit employment taxes by… |
| Wednesday | The following Wednesday |
| Thursday | The following Wednesday |
| Friday | The following Wednesday |
| Saturday | The following Friday |
| Sunday | The following Friday |
| Monday | The following Friday |
| Tuesday | The following Friday |
Keep in mind, though: if you accumulate $100,000 or more of tax liability in a single day, the IRS requires you to 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.
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.
July 1, 2024
Start of Q3 for the calendar year
If you operate on the calendar year, July 1 marks the beginning of Q3.
Form 730 and Form 11-C filing deadlines
You have to file Form 730, the monthly tax return for wagers, if you accepted wagers during May 2024 and meet the following criteria:
- 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 730 is normally due on the last day of the month after you accept wagers, but because June 30 falls on a weekend, you have until July 1. Learn more about Form 730 here.
If your business accepts wagers of any kind, you also need to file Form 11-C, the Occupational Tax and Registration Return for Wagering, by July 1—and pay any annual tax due on wagers.
Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in May
If you first used your registered heavy highway motor vehicle (with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more) in May 2024, you have to file Form 2290 by July 1. The form is always due on the last day of the month following the month the vehicle was first used, but because June 30 fell on a weekend this year, the deadline is moved to July 1.
To learn more about Form 2290, review the IRS’ instructions and information.
July 10, 2024
Employee tip reporting deadline for June 2024
If your employees earned tips of $20 or more during June 2024, they have to report those tips to you by July 10. You can learn more about tip withholding and reporting requirements here.
July 15, 2024
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), your tax deposit for June payrolls is due on July 15.
July 31, 2024
Form 941 filing deadline for Q2
If you have at least one employee, you have to file Form 941 to report any income taxes, Social Security taxes, or Medicare taxes withheld from your staff’s paychecks and pay your share of payroll taxes every quarter.
The second Form 941 for 2024—and the accompanying payroll tax payment—are due on July 31. You can mail the document along with your payment voucher to the IRS. Your mailing address depends on the state your business is located in and whether or not your payment is enclosed, so make sure you review the tax form instructions for more information.
You can also e-file instead through the EFTPS.
Form 720 filing deadline
If your business manufactures or sells certain goods and services, you’re required to report and pay excise taxes to the IRS on a quarterly basis using Form 720. You can see the full list of the goods and services that incur excise taxes on the document itself. If your business deals with any of them, the second of your four payments for the 2024 tax year is due July 31.
If you want to e-file, you can pay your excise taxes through the EFTPS. To mail the tax form to the IRS, send the form, along with your check or money order payment and the Form 720-V payment voucher (found on the last page of Form 720), to the following address:
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
Ogden, UT 84201-0009
FUTA second quarter tax payment due
The Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) says you’re subject to FUTA tax on the wages you paid employees who aren’t household or agricultural employees if:
- You paid wages of $1,500 or more to employees in any calendar quarter during 2022 or 2023, or
- You had one or more employees for at least some part of a day in any 20 or more different weeks in 2022 or 20 or more different weeks in 2023. Count all full-time, part-time, and temporary employees.
If the above applies to you and your FUTA tax liability through June is more than $500, you need to make your second quarterly payment by July 31.
If you owe $500 or more, you have to use the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) to pay. Check out Publication 966 for electronic federal tax payment system information, and Publication 15 for more information on deposit rules.
Form 730 filing deadline
You have to file Form 730 if you accepted wagers during June 2024 and meet the below criteria:
- 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
You also have to pay taxes on these wagers. Learn more about Form 730 here.
Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in June
If you’ve registered a heavy highway motor vehicle (with a taxable gross weight of 55,000 pounds or more) that was first used in June 2024, you have to file Form 2290 by July 31.
To learn more about Form 2290, review the IRS’ instructions and information.
State unemployment insurance taxes due
State unemployment insurance tax returns and payments are due July 31 for second-quarter returns.
Check with the unemployment insurance tax collectors for your specific state to confirm when unemployment taxes are due. The Department of Labor (DOL) has a list of all the states’ contact information for their unemployment agencies.
State income tax withholding quarterly returns due
Most states require you to pay income taxes to the state agencies at specific intervals, depending on the amount of tax you pay to the state annually. Many of these states have quarterly returns that are due at the end of each calendar quarter; for Q2, the deadline is July 31.
States that don’t have income tax are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. If you have employees who live outside of these states, you probably owe payroll taxes to the state agencies.
Local payroll taxes due
Some states also impose local payroll taxes. You may owe local taxes and have to file quarterly tax returns this month if you have employees working in the following states:
- Alabama
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- Ohio
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- West Virginia
For more information on unemployment insurance tax, state income tax, and local tax deadlines for your business, check with the appropriate tax authorities.
HR compliance deadlines
July 15, 2024
Second quarterly contribution for defined benefit pension plans due
If you don’t meet the minimum funding requirements for your defined benefit pension plans by the end of the plan year, you have to make annual contributions for the following year in quarterly installments. The deadline for the second quarterly payment is July 15.
July 29, 2024
Summary of Material Modification due to plan participants
If you made any changes to your business’s retirement plan in 2023, you need to submit a Summary of Material Modification (SMM) to all plan participants and beneficiaries 210 days after the end of the plan year that the changes were made.
That day is July 28 this year, but since that day falls on a weekend, the deadline is July 29.
Note that if you already published the change in a revised summary plan description and distributed it to participants, you don’t have to send an SMM notice.
July 31, 2024
Form 5330 filing deadline
Form 5330 reports excise taxes related to employee benefit plans. If you made a mistake on your employee benefit plan, like failing to pay the liquidity shortfall or depositing employee contributions late, you need to fill out and film Form 5330 by July 31.
Find instructions on how and where to file here.
Forms 5500 and 5558 filing deadline (for calendar year plans)
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) requires certain employers to file an annual report with the DOL that provides information about certain sponsored health and welfare plans from the company. These plans include:
- Plans covering 100 or more participants on the first day of the ERISA plan year
- Plans sponsored by a Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA)
- Plans funded through a trust or other means
The report, called Form 5500, requests information on a company’s employee benefit plans to ensure they remain compliant with government regulations. You must submit this annual return for the 2023 plan electronically (either with EFAST2-approved software or through IFILE) by July 31.
For more information on the form and its filing instructions, visit the official DOL webpage.
If you need extra time to file Form 5500, submit Form 5558 by July 31. This will extend your deadline by two and a half months to October 15. Keep in mind that you still have to pay any taxes due by July 31; otherwise, you risk incurring penalties.
Deadline for annual benefit statements for individual account plans without participant-directed investments
If you have individual retirement account plans that don’t allow participant-directed investments, you need to send your employees an individual benefits statement (IBS) showing the benefits they’ve earned and their vested amounts at least once a year. The deadline is July 31.
