What Forms Must You File?(p10)

You must file certain forms to report your household employee's wages and the federal employment taxes for the employee if you pay any of the following wages to the employee.

• Social security and Medicare wages.
• FUTA wages.
• Wages from which you withhold federal income tax.

For information on ordering employment tax forms, see How To Get Tax Help, later.

You must include your employer identification number (EIN) on the forms you file for your household employee. An EIN is a nine-digit number issued by the IRS. It is not the same as a social security number.

If you do not have an EIN, you may apply for one online. Go to IRS.gov and click on the Apply for an EIN Online link under Tools. You may also apply for an EIN by calling 1-800-829-4933, or you can fax or mail Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number, to the IRS.

File a separate 2013 Form W-2, for each household employee to whom you pay either of the following wages during the year.

• Social security and Medicare wages of $1,800 or more.
• Wages from which you withhold federal income tax.

You must complete Form W-2 and give Copies B, C, and 2 to your employee by January 31, 2014. You must send Copy A of Form W-2 with Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements, to the Social Security Administration by February 28, 2014 (March 31, 2014, if you file your Form W-2 electronically). Electronic filing is available to all employers and is free, fast, secure, and offers a later filing deadline. Visit the SSA's Employer W-2 Filing Instructions & Information website at www.socialsecurity.gov/employer for guidelines on filing electronically.

If an employee stops working for you before the end of 2013, you can file Form W-2 and provide copies to your employee immediately after you make your final payment of wages. You do not need to wait until 2014. If the employee asks you for Form W-2, give it to him or her within 30 days after the request or the last wage payment, whichever is later.

Use Schedule H to report household employment taxes if you pay any of the following wages to the employee.

• Social security and Medicare wages of $1,800 or more.
• FUTA wages.
• Wages from which you withhold federal income tax.

File Schedule H with your 2013 federal income tax return by April 15, 2014. If you get an extension to file your return, the extension also will apply to your Schedule H.

If you are not required to file a 2013 tax return, you have the following two options.

1. You can file Schedule H by itself. See the Schedule H instructions for details.
2. If, besides your household employee, you have other employees for whom you report employment taxes on Form 941, Form 944, or Form 943 and on Form 940, you can include your taxes for your household employee on those forms. See Business employment tax returns, next.

Employers having the options listed above include certain tax-exempt organizations that do not have to file a tax return, such as churches that pay a household worker to take care of a minister's home.

Do not use Schedule H if you choose to pay the employment taxes for your household employee with business or farm employment taxes. (See Payment option for business employers, earlier.) Instead, include the social security, Medicare, and withheld federal income taxes for the employee on the Form 941 or Form 944 you file for your business or on the Form 943 you file for your farm. Include the FUTA tax for the employee on your Form 940.

If you report the employment taxes for your household employee on Form 941, Form 944, or Form 943, file Form W-2 for that employee with the Forms W-2 and Form W-3 for your business or farm employees.

For information on filing Form 941 or Form 944, see Publication 15 (Circular E). For information on filing Form 943, see Publication 51 (Circular A), Agricultural Employer's Tax Guide. Both of these publications also provide information about filing Form 940.