Midyear 944

[Nashville]

If a business closes during the year and has been filing an annual 944, can it wait until the end of the year, or does it have to be filed within X no. of days of the business closing??

p.s. if it helps any, it does not appear IRS has designed the 2012 version of the 944 yet...

[Gretel]

If a business closes during the year and has been filing an annual 944, can it wait until the end of the year, or does it have to be filed within X no. of days of the business closing??

p.s. if it helps any, it does not appear IRS has designed the 2012 version of the 944 yet...

I never heard of filing employment tax forms out of schedule no matter what the reason is. It should be the same as the filing of W-2's/W-3's, one would think.

[Black Bart]

Early filing.

I've wondered the same thing myself about this and other forms too. The instructions don't usually say anything about such and it's one of those things that bothers me, but never seems quite important enough to make me go to the trouble of finding out.

I've asked IRS personnel a few times when calling about other matters and the reply is always "I don't know."

[S T]

From the irs.gov instructions http://www.irs.gov/instructions/i944/ch01.html#d0e297

If your business has closed...
If you go out of business or stop paying wages to your employees, you must file a final return. To tell the IRS Form 944 for a particular year is your final return, check the box in Part 3 on page 2 of Form 944 and enter the final date you paid wages. Also attach a statement to your return showing the name of the person keeping the payroll records and the address where those records will be kept.

If you participated in a statutory merger or consolidation, or qualify for predecessor-successor status due to an acquisition, you should generally file Schedule D (Form 941), Report of Discrepancies Caused by Acquisitions, Statutory Mergers, or Consolidations. See the Instructions for Schedule D (Form 941) to determine whether you should file Schedule D (Form 941) and when you should file it.

When Must You File?
File Form 944 by January 31, after the end of the calendar year. If you made timely deposits in full payment of your taxes by January 31, you have 10 more calendar days after that date to file your Form 944.

File Form 944 only once for each calendar year. If you filed Form 944 electronically, do not file a paper Form 944. For more information about filing Form 944 electronically, see Electronic filing and payment, earlier.

If we receive Form 944 after the due date, we will treat Form 944 as filed on time if the envelope containing Form 944 is properly addressed, contains sufficient postage, and is postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service on or before the due date, or sent by an IRS-designated private delivery service on or before the due date. If you do not follow these guidelines, we will consider Form 944 filed when it is actually received. See Pub. 15 (Circular E) for more information on IRS-designated private delivery services.

If any due date for filing falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, you may file your return on the next business day.

Appears to be an Annual Form due by Jan 31, after the end of the calendar year, regardless of the date out of business.

Sandy