An Agricultural Employer's 2021 Tax Obligations: A Series

By:Jeffrey K. Lewis, Esq., Program Coordinator, OSU Income Tax Schools & ANR Extension Tuesday, January 11th, 2022
Multiple W-2 forms.

As we settle into 2022 and regroup after a busy holiday season, one of things an agricultural employer should be thinking about is taxes, more specifically, have they met their obligations when it comes to federal and state employment taxes.  In this two-part series, we discuss the federal and state taxes that an employer is required to withhold from employees’ wages and the tax obligations that an agricultural employer is solely responsible for.  This series covers the taxes and obligations an employer has because of the wages paid to employees.  This series does not cover the business income or personal income tax reporting obligations of agricultural employers.  

The first part of this series focuses on federal taxes and an employer’s obligations when it comes to social security, Medicare, federal income, and federal unemployment taxes. We also discuss when to pay the taxes and how to pay them.  The information contained within this series is not meant to be legal and/or tax advice.  Agricultural employers should seek out the counsel and guidance of an attorney or other tax professional to help them ensure they are compliant with their obligations under federal tax law.

Social Security and Medicare Taxes.  Generally speaking, an employer must withhold social security and Medicare taxes from the wages it pays its employees.  However, there are special rules for agricultural employers.  The $150 Test or the $2,500 Test will help determine if an agricultural employees’ wages are subject to social security and Medicare taxes along with federal income tax withholding requirements.  

All cash wages that an employer pays to an employee during the year for farmwork is subject to social security, Medicare, and federal income tax withholding requirements if either of the following tests are met: 

  • The $150 Test.  An employer pays cash wages to an employee of $150 or more in a year for farmwork. 
    • This includes all cash wages paid on a time, piecework, or other basis. 
  • The $2,500 Test.  The total that an employer paid for farmwork (cash and non-cash wages) to all employees is $2,500 or more during the year. 

Annual cash wages of less than $150 paid to a seasonal farmworker are not subject to social security and Medicare taxes, or federal income tax withholding, even if an employer pays all farmworkers $2,500 or more.  However, these wages do count towards the $2,500 Test to determine whether other farmworkers’ wages are subject to social security and Medicare taxes. 

Social Security Tax Rate.  The social security tax is 6.2% for both the employee and the employer on the first $142,800 paid to each employee in 2021.  This means that an employer must withhold 6.2% of the employee’s wages for social security and the employer must match the 6.2%.  

Medicare Tax Rate.  The Medicare tax rate is 1.45% for each employee, on all wages earned.  An employer must withhold Medicare taxes from an employee’s wages and pay a matching amount.  

Federal Income Tax Withholding.  An agricultural employer must withhold federal income tax from the wages of farmworkers if the wages are subject to social security and Medicare taxes (i.e. is the $150 Test or $2,500 Test met?).  The amount of federal income tax withheld is determined by the gross wages paid to an employee (before any taxes are taken out). 

To know how much federal income tax to withhold from an employee’s wages, an employer should have a Form W-4  (“W-4) on file for each employee.  The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) redesigned Form W-4 for 2020 and beyond.  The new W-4 no longer asks employees to report the number of withholding allowances they are claiming.  The IRS encourages employees to file an updated W-4, but it is not a requirement to help determine the employee’s federal income tax withholding. 

How much does an employer withhold for federal income tax?  The best answer a lawyer can give to this question is, it depends.  Luckily, the IRS has provided a tool to help employers determine the amount of federal income tax to withhold from an employee’s wages.  The Income Tax Withholding Assistant for Employers allows employers to enter an employee’s W-4 information to calculate the amount of federal income tax to withhold.  Note: The Income Tax Withholding Assistant will not be available after 2022.  The IRS suggests using the Income Tax Withholding Assistant to become familiar with how to use the worksheets and tables in Publication 15-T to be able to calculate the amount of federal income tax to withhold after 2022.   

What if my employee claims he or she is exempt from federal income tax withholding?  An employee may claim an exemption from federal income tax withholding because they had no federal income tax liability last year and they expect to have no income tax liability this year.  However, the employee’s wages are still subject to social security and Medicare taxes. 

To claim the exemption, an employee must indicate the exemption on their W-4.  The exemption is not permanent and is only for that year.  To continue to be exempt, an employee must provide their employer a new W-4 by February 15.  If an employee does not provide a new W-4 by February 15, the employer is required to start withholding federal income tax as if the employee had checked the Single or Married filing separate box on their W-4.  If an employee provides a new W-4 after the February 15 deadline, an employer may apply the exemption to future wages but should not refund any taxes withheld while the exempt status was not in place.  

Notice to Employees About Earned Income Credit (“EIC”).  An employer must notify employees who have had no federal income tax withheld that they may be eligible for a tax refund because of the EIC.  One easy way an employer can meet this requirement is by having the EIC notice on the back of the Form W-2 issued to all employees.  

Depositing Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Income Taxes.  Employment taxes must be deposited by electronic fund transfer (“EFT”).  Normally, an EFT is made to the federal government using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (“EFTPS”).  EFTPS is a free service provided by the Department of Treasury.  For more information on EFTPS visit EFTPS.gov or call 800-555-4477.  If an employer does not want to use EFTPS, it can arrange for its tax professional, financial institution, payroll service, or other trusted third party to make electronic payments on its behalf.  

When to Deposit Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Income Taxes.  An agricultural employer’s deposit schedule is determined from the total tax liability reported on Form 943, line 13, for the lookback period.  The lookback period is the second calendar year preceding the current calendar year.  Since we are in 2022, the lookback period will be 2020.  This means that an employer’s status as either a “monthly schedule depositor” or “semiweekly schedule depositor” will be determined by the amount on Form 943, line 13 from 2020.  

The terms “monthly schedule depositor” or “semiweekly schedule depositor” are not based on how often an employer pays its employees or how often it will be required to make tax deposits.  The terms simply identify which set of rules an employer must follow.  As discussed above the deposit schedule an employer must follow is determined by the total tax liability reported on Form 943, line 13.  For 2022, an employer is a: 

  • Monthly schedule depositor if it reported $50,000 or less in 2020. 
  • Semiweekly schedule depositor if it reported more than $50,000 in 2020. 

Monthly Deposit Schedule.  If an employer is a monthly schedule depositor, it must deposit employment taxes on wages paid during a calendar month by the 15th day of the following month.  If an employer does not pay any wages in a calendar month, it has no deposit requirement for the following month. 

Semiweekly Deposit Schedule.  If payday falls on a Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, then an employer must deposit taxes by the following Wednesday.  If payday falls on a Saturday, Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday, then an employer must deposit taxes by the following Friday.   This is a very simplified explanation and assumes an employer has one payday for all employees.  If an employer has multiple paydays for different employees, it should speak with an attorney or other tax professional to help determine when taxes should be deposited. 

Federal Unemployment Tax Act (“FUTA”).  FUTA, in conjunction with state unemployment systems, provides unemployment compensation to workers who have lost their jobs.  Most employers pay both federal and state unemployment taxes.  Additionally, only the employer is responsible for the FUTA tax, nothing is withheld from an employee’s wages for FUTA.    

Agricultural Employers and FUTA.  An agricultural employer is required to file Form 940 and pay FUTA tax if it: 

  • Paid cash wages of $20,000 or more to farmworkers in any calendar quarter in 2021 or 2022, or 
  • Employed 10 or more farmworkers during at least some part of the day (whether or not at the same time) during any 20 or more different weeks in 2021 or 20 or more different weeks in 2022.  

When determining whether an employer meets either test above, employers must count the wages paid to H-2A workers, even though the wages paid to H-2A workers are not subject to FUTA. 

Form 940 Due Date.  Form 940 is due by January 31.  If an employer made deposits on time and in full, they may file Form 940 by February 10. 

FUTA Tax Rate.  The FUTA tax rate is 6% for 2021.  The tax applies to the first $7,000 an employer pays to each employee.  There is a tax credit that may be applied against the FUTA tax rate for any amounts paid into state unemployment funds.  The maximum credit is 5.4%.  An employer is entitled to the maximum credit if it paid state unemployment taxes in full, on time, and on all the same wages that are subject to FUTA.  Visit the instructions for filing Form 940 for further FUTA tax credit guidance.  

Depositing FUTA Tax.  FUTA taxes are deposited by EFT and are generally deposited on a quarterly basis.  To calculate an employer’s FUTA tax, it should multiple the amount of wages paid to employees by .6% during the quarter.  This percentage may have to be adjusted depending on an employer’s entitlement to the FUTA tax credit for state unemployment contributions.  When an employee’s wages reach $7,000 for the calendar year, an employer does not have to figure any additional FUTA tax for that employee.  

Conclusion.  The above information is a very general overview of an employer’s tax obligations when it comes to its employees.  As you can see, federal tax law can be daunting.  We barely scratched the surface when it comes to specific exemptions or additional obligations for an agricultural employer.  For example, agricultural employers may not always employ farmworkers or employees “engaged in agriculture.”  The requirements and obligations of an employer that employs both farmworkers and non-farmworkers be may different than what is discussed above.  Therefore, we cannot stress enough, the importance of speaking with an attorney or other tax professional so they can help you navigate federal tax law and your obligations as an employer. 

Look out for our next and final installment of “An Agricultural Employer’s 2021 Tax Obligations: A Series” where we will be discussing an agricultural employer’s requirements and obligations under Ohio tax law.  

References and Resources

Internal Revenue Service, Publication 15 - (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guidehttps://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf 

Internal Revenue Service, Publication 15-A - Employer's Supplemental Tax Guidehttps://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15a.pdf

Internal Revenue Service, Draft Publication 51- (Circular A), Agricultural Employer's Tax Guidehttps://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-dft/p51--dft.pdf

Internal Revenue Service, Publication 225 - Farmer's Tax Guidehttps://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p225.pdf