The busiest month of the year is almost over, but don’t relax just yet—the month of May comes with its own share of deadlines to keep an eye out for. Find all the tax, payroll, and compliance dates you need to keep track of below.
* These are bank holidays, so the Federal Reserve banks and branches will be closed. See The Federal Reserve website for all banking holidays that impact payroll and how to make timely payroll deposits.
Federal holidays
May 30, 2022: Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a bank holiday, so take the day off for a well-deserved break.
Tax and payroll compliance deadlines
Payroll tax deposits (for semi-weekly depositors)
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires employers to deposit federal payroll tax payments throughout the year, although when these deposits are made depends on the company’s withheld federal income tax and FICA taxes (also known as Medicare and Social Security taxes) between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021 (the lookback period).
Companies that report over $50,000 in FICA taxes from the lookback period follow the semi-weekly depositor schedule, which is outlined 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 |
If your company doesn’t meet this threshold, you’d follow the monthly deposit schedule instead (more on this later).
Semi-weekly and monthly depositors all make their payments through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). Be sure to make these payments on time, though, or else you’ll be subject to penalties of up to 15%.
Find more information on federal payroll taxes and your payment schedule in Publication 15.
Depending on where your company is located, you may be required to pay state and local payroll taxes too. Make sure to check with your state and local tax authorities for more information.
May 10, 2022
Form 4070 due to employers
Employees who receive over $20 in tips in a month must report this income to their employers by the 10th day of the following month using Form 4070. So if your workers received any tip income in April, they must report it to you by May 10, 2022.
May 15, 2022
Payroll tax deposits (for monthly payroll depositors)
If you are a new employer or reported less than $50,000 in FICA taxes during the last lookback period, you’re considered a monthly payroll depositor. Make sure to deposit last month’s payroll taxes by May 15, 2022 through the EFTPS to avoid paying penalties.
Nonprofit tax returns due
Like conventional business entities, nonprofits are also required to submit annual tax returns to the IRS. If your nonprofit organization follows the calendar year, file your tax return for the 2021 tax year by submitting Form 990 by May 15, 2022.
This tax form reports your organization’s activities and finances for the year, and is made available to the public for anyone to review.
Make sure to fill out this form accurately, completely, and in a timely manner. Failure to do so will bring penalties to your organization, while nonprofits that fail to file three years in a row will lose their tax-exempt status.
For more information on how to fill out Form 990, review the official instructions on the IRS website.
May 16, 2022
Tax filing deadline for natural disaster victims
C corporations, single-member LLCs, and sole proprietors that were affected by the natural disasters in the following states have until May 16, 2022 to file their 2021 tax returns and pay any outstanding taxes to the IRS:
- Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee (due to severe storms and tornadoes that began on December 10)
- Colorado (due to wildfires and straight-line winds that began on December 30)
HR compliance deadlines
May 2, 2022
Annual funding notice due to plan participants
Sponsors of single and multi employer direct benefit pension plans are required to send annual funding notices outlining the plan’s funding status to plan participants, beneficiaries, and labor organizations that represent their participants no later than 120 days after the end of the plan year.
This would typically make April 30 the deadline for these forms, but because the date falls on a Saturday this year, annual funding notices are due to plan participants by May 2, 2022 instead.
Send the notice online through the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) e-Filing portal, via email, or by mail. Note that PBGC recommends sending your notices through the first two methods instead of the latter.
For more information, including how to set up and manage your e-Filing portal account, visit the PBGC webpage on multiemployer plan notices.
May 15, 2022
Quarterly plan statements due to plan participants
Employers who offer retirement plans to their workers are required to send plan statements to participants with an account balance on a quarterly basis. These documents must be sent out no later than 45 days after the end of the quarter, making the first of these statements for 2022 due by May 15, 2022.
Make sure to include the following information in your company’s plan statements:
- The total and vested account balance, as of the last day of the statement period
- The value of each investment in the account
- The dollar amount in fees that have been deducted from the account
- Any limitations or restrictions on the participant’s ability to direct an investment
- An explanation (in layman’s terms) of the importance of a well-balanced and diversified investment portfolio to the participant’s long-term financial security
You’ll also want to include a note directing the participant to the Department of Labor’s website for more information on personal investing and diversification.
May 16, 2022
Retirement plan employer contributions due for natural disaster victims
The IRS allows employers—and more specifically, C corporations, single-member LLCs, and sole proprietors—to deduct contributions to employee retirement accounts for the 2021 tax year from their taxable income if they’re made by April 15, 2022.
For business owners and companies that received a tax filing extension due to natural disasters in their state, their deadline to make retirement plan employer contributions is May 16, 2022 instead.
