e-News for Payroll Professionals

Useful Links:

IRS.gov

Payroll Professionals
Tax Center

Employment Taxes

Reporting Agents File

Employment Tax Forms

Employment Tax Publications

Online Ordering

SSA/IRS Reporter

SSA - Employer Web Page

Taxpayer Advocate Service

Back to top

Issue Number: 2020-14

Inside This Issue

1. IRS reminds businesses to e-file payroll tax returns
2. PPP loan forgiveness fact sheet
3. IRS hiring collection representatives throughout country
4. New IRS communications tool, “A Closer Look,” now available
5. Technical guidance
6. New forms, instructions, notices and publications on IRS.gov

The IRS urges payroll professionals and businesses to use the speed and convenience of filing payroll tax returns (Forms 940, 941, 943, 944 or 945) electronically.

An IRS new release provides information on business e-file and the two options for electronically filing payroll tax returns.

Back to Top

Check out the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program Loan Forgiveness fact sheet to find out how to:

• Contact a PPP lender and complete the correct form
• Compile documentation
• Submit the forgiveness form and documentation to a PPP lender
• Continue communicating with a lender throughout the process

Back to Top

The IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed division wants to fill more than 150 Collection Contact Representative vacancies throughout the country. The pay scale ranges from GS-5 to GS-8.

Payroll professionals are encouraged to share the external announcements with interested friends, family or clients that might be interested in applying.

Collection representatives provide a full range of administrative and technical assistance for taxpayers and their representatives. The job announcements list the responsibilities and closing dates:

• Collection Contact Representative
• Collection Contact Representative (seasonal)

Back to Top

The IRS has a new online communication tool called “A Closer Look.”

The new tool will feature posts from a variety of IRS executives that delve into the major issues facing the IRS and tax administration. Their topics will cover timely issues of interest to taxpayers and the tax and payroll communities.

The initial post features IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig discussing ongoing work on Economic Impact Payments, the steps the IRS is taking to help people and a call to share information to reach people who don’t normally file a tax return before the newly extended Nov. 21 deadline for the Non-Filers tool on IRS.gov. Another post by Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement Sunita Lough takes a closer look at how IRS individual audit rates increase as income rises.

Additional “A Closer Look” postings will be made periodically. People can subscribe to IRS Newswire to get an email copy of the posts as they become available.

Back to Top

• Transition relief related to health coverage reporting required by sections 6055 and 6056 for 2020

Notice 2020-76 extends the due date for certain 2020 information-reporting requirements under sections 6055 and 6056 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) from January 31, 2021, to March 2, 2021. This notice also provides relief from the section 6721 and section 6722 penalties for certain aspects of the 2020 information-reporting requirements under sections 6055 and 6056.

• Tax year 2021 annual inflation adjustments for more than 60 tax provisions

The IRS announced the tax year 2021 annual inflation adjustments for more than 60 tax provisions, including the tax rate schedules and other tax changes. Revenue Procedure 2020-45 provides details about these annual adjustments.

• Form W-2 reporting of employee Social Security tax deferred under Notice 2020-65 – Instructions for employers and employees

Notice 2020-65 allowed employers the option to defer the employee portion of Social Security tax from September 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020, for eligible employees.

The IRS created instructions for both employers and employees about reporting deferral of this tax on Form W-2.

Back to Top

Forms

• Form 941, Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return
• Form 941 (PR), Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return (Puerto Rico Version)
• Form 941-X (PR), Adjusted Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund (Puerto Rico Version)
• Form 1094-B, Transmittal of Health Coverage Information Returns
• Form 1094-C, Transmittal of Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Information Returns
• Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement
• Form 1095-B, Health Coverage
• Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage
• Form 8922, Third-Party Sick Pay Recap

Instructions

• Inst 941 (PR), Instructions for Form 941 (PR), Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return (Puerto Rico Version)
• Inst 941-X (PR), Instructions for Form 941-X (PR), Adjusted Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund (Puerto Rico Version)
• Inst 1094-B and 1095-B, Instructions for Forms 1094-B and 1095-B
• Inst 1094-C and 1095-C, Instructions for Forms 1094-C and 1095-C
• Inst 1095-A, Instructions for Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement

Notices

• Notice 931, Deposit Requirements for Employment Taxes

Publications

• Publication 1494, Table for Figuring Amount Exempt from Levy on Wages, Salary, and Other Income (Forms 668-W(ACS), 668-W(c)(DO) and 668-W(ICS))
• Publication 1693, SSA/IRS Reporter Newsletter

Back to Top