October isn’t just the start of Q4—it also marks the beginning of the busiest time of year! Make sure you stay on track with your compliance deadlines using our handy guide below. Here are key tax, payroll, and HR due dates coming up this month.
Federal holidays
National Disability Employment Awareness Month
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), a time to celebrate workers with disabilities, showcase inclusive employment practices, and educate employers on how to support their employees. The 2023 theme is “Advancing Access and Equity.” Learn more about how you can participate in NDEAM by visiting the Department of Labor’s website.
October 9, 2023
Indigenous Peoples’ Day/Columbus Day
Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a holiday that celebrates Indigenous American people and honors their histories, challenges, and cultures. Many states and cities have chosen to observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day instead of celebrating Columbus Day, which has historically been a federal holiday. Check here to see whether your state observes Indigenous Peoples’ Day or recognizes it as an official paid holiday.
Tax and payroll compliance deadlines
Payroll tax deposits (for semi-weekly depositors)
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires employers who 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, 2021 to June 30, 2022, you’re considered a semi-weekly depositor and must 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 |
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.
State and local payroll taxes
Unemployment insurance taxes
If you have employees, you probably have to pay both federal and state unemployment insurance taxes. Many states require business owners to submit unemployment insurance returns and taxes by the end of the month following the end of each calendar quarter. That means October 31 is the deadline for third-quarter returns and taxes.
Check with your state’s treasury or revenue department to find out when your quarterly unemployment insurance taxes are due.
Income tax withholding
If you have employees, you also have to withhold taxes from their paychecks, then pay the money to your state at certain intervals. Many states have quarterly returns that are due at the end of each calendar quarter.
The states without income tax are:
- Alaska
- Florida
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Washington
- Wyoming
If you have employees outside of the states listed above, chances are you owe payroll taxes to these state agencies.
Local taxes
Many municipalities also impose local payroll taxes that are collected by local tax authorities. 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 (collected by the state)
- Kentucky
- Maryland (collected by the state)
- 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.
October 1, 2023
Start of Q4 for the calendar year
If your company follows a calendar year cycle, the fourth quarter of the year begins on October 1.
October 2, 2023
Form 730 filing deadline for wagers in August
You have to file Form 730, the monthly tax return for wagers, if you meet the following criteria and accepted wagers during August 2023:
- 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
Learn more about Form 730 here.
Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in August
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 August 2023, you have to file Form 2290 by October 2 (the date was extended since September 30 is on a weekend).
Per the IRS, you must file the form by the last day of the month following the month in which you first used the vehicle on a public highway.
To learn more about Form 2290, review the IRS’ instructions and information.
October 10, 2023
Employee tip reporting deadline for September
Your employees are required to report to you any tips of $20 or more that they earned during the month of September 2023. You can learn more about tip withholding and reporting requirements here.
October 16, 2023
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 September payrolls is due on October 16.
Form 1120 extended filing deadline
Most C corporations that operate on a calendar year are required to submit Form 1120 and the appropriate taxes to the IRS. If you requested a six-month extension using Form 7004, you must file Form 1120 by October 16.
You can file your returns by mail or online, but the IRS recommends e-filing because it’s faster. If your C corporation has $10 million or more in assets and if you file 250 or more information returns per year (i.e. W-2s, 1099s), you’re required to file your taxes electronically.
Find Form 1120 e-filing guidelines and general instructions on the IRS website.
Form 1040 extended filing deadline for sole proprietors, single-member LLCs, and businesses in disaster areas
If you’re a sole proprietor or single-member LLC that reports your income through your personal tax returns, you must submit Form 1040 and Schedule C to the IRS. If you requested a six-month extension using Form 4868, you must file Form 1040 by October 16.
The IRS also extended the tax filing and payment deadline to October 16 for people and businesses located in the following FEMA-designated disaster areas:
- Most of California, due to severe winter storms that began at the end of 2022 and continued during the winter of 2023 (see the list of impacted counties)
- Parts of Alabama, due to severe storms and tornadoes that began in January 2023 (see the list of impacted counties)
- Parts of Georgia, due to severe storms that started in January 2023 (see the list of impacted counties)
October 31, 2023
FUTA quarterly tax payment deadline
The Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) says that 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 2021 or 2022, or
- You had one or more employees for at least some part of a day in any 20 or more different weeks in 2021 or 20 or more different weeks in 2022. Count all full-time, part-time, and temporary employees.
If the above applies to you, you have to file Form 940 by January 31. However, you also have to deposit your FUTA tax before you file your return. If your FUTA tax liability is more than $500 for the calendar year, you must deposit at least one quarterly payment. If your FUTA tax liability is $500 or less in a quarter, you can carry it forward to the next quarter.
That means if your FUTA tax liability through September is more than $500, you need to make your third quarterly payment by October 31.
If you owe $500 or more, you must make electronic fund transfers using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). Refer to Publication 966 for electronic federal tax payment system information, and Publication 15 for more information on deposit rules.
Form 941 filing deadline for Q3
Most businesses with at least one employee must file Form 941 to report any income taxes, Social Security taxes, or Medicare taxes withheld from their staff’s paychecks and pay their share of payroll taxes every quarter—even if they don’t have any employees for part of the year.
The third Form 941 for 2023 and the accompanying payroll tax payment are due on October 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 730 filing deadline for wagers in September
You have to file Form 730, the monthly tax return for wagers, if you meet the following criteria and accepted wagers during September 2023:
- 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
Learn more about Form 730 here.
Form 2290 filing deadline for vehicles first used in September
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 September 2023, you have to file Form 2290 by October 31.
Per the IRS, you must file the form by the last day of the month following the month in which you first used the vehicle on a public highway.
To learn more about Form 2290, review the IRS’ instructions and information.
Form 720 filing deadline
If your business manufactures or sells certain goods and services, you must 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 third of your four payments for the 2023 tax year is due October 31.
If you want to e-file, you can pay your excise taxes through the EFTPS. If you want 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
HR compliance deadlines
October 3, 2023
QSEHRA annual notice delivery to plan participants
With the end of the calendar year in sight, it’s time to send Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA) notices to your benefits plan participants. You have to send these notices out 90 days before the start of the calendar year you’ll be offering the QSEHRA. If you plan to offer it starting January 1, 2024, you have to send notices by October 3.
Make sure you send the following notices:
- 401(k) safe harbor match
- Automatic contribution arrangement (ACA)
- Qualified automatic contribution arrangement (QACA)
- Qualified default investment alternative (QDIA)
Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) application deadline
The Retiree Drug Subsidy is an application that helps employers support Medicare-eligible retirees in getting better drug coverage. The RDS application is due to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 90 days before the start of the plan year. If your plan year begins on January 1, 2024, your RDS application is due October 3.
Learn more about the RDS application and how to submit it on the CMS website.
October 13, 2023
Medicare Part D Notice of Creditable Coverage due to plan participants
If you have a group health plan and provide prescription drug coverage, you’re required to tell individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D (and people who are about to become eligible) whether their plan’s coverage is at least as good as Medicare’s—in other words, whether it’s “creditable” or “non-creditable.”
Individuals are eligible for Part D if they meet one of the following criteria:
- are 65 or more years old
- are three months away from turning 65 years old
- have a disability
You have to disclose this information to all eligible individuals electronically or via mail, even if their plan is non-creditable. This ensures your plan participants have the information they need to decide whether they need Medicare prescription coverage ahead of the annual enrollment period, which begins in November.
You can see CMS’ templates for these notice letters here.
October 16, 2023
Employer retirement contributions due for certain employers
If you have a sole proprietorship or a C corporation and received approval for an extended tax filing deadline of October 16, you also have to make any final employer retirement plan contributions for the 2023 tax year by this date.
Form 5500 due for extended deadline recipients
Employers use Form 5500 to disclose to the IRS information about their business, retirement plans, and plan participants. If you received a filing extension for this document, whether by filing Form 5558 or Form 7004, your new deadline is October 16.
Third quarter 2023 minimum funding payment due for certain defined benefit pension plans
If you have a defined benefit pension plan that experienced a funding shortfall in 2022, you have to make your third quarter minimum funding contribution for the 2023 plan year by October 16.
