Tax Analysts provides news, analysis, and commentary on tax-related topics, including the latest developments affecting treatment of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA). 

The Federal Unemployment Tax Act imposes a tax that helps administer unemployment insurance programs and pays a portion of unemployment benefits. This tax is imposed on employers and currently this is set at 6 percent of the total wages paid by the employer during the year (section 3301 of the Internal Revenue Code). Credits are available for amounts that the employer contributes to state unemployment funds (section 3302).

The IRS provides valuable guidance regarding FUTA compliance in its publications, especially Publication 15, (Circular E), Employer’s Tax Guide and Publication 15-A, Employer’s Supplemental Tax Guide; both of which are available on the Tax Analysts’ website. The IRS provides further guidance at its website, at [http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Federal-Unemployment-Tax].

Tax Analysts has covered IRS guidance on federal unemployment tax and FUTA issues published in items such as Notice 2015-6, which addressed reporting third-party sick pay recaps, ILM 201522004, which concluded that a statutory penalty for late-paid wages was not wages for FUTA purposes, and ECC 201518014, which addressed interest accrual on FUTA underpayments.

Tax Analysts has also covered court cases with holdings based on interpretations of FUTA (Tax Court Rejects Federal Common Law Successor in Interest Standard - TFT Galveston Portfolio Ltd. et al. v. Commissioner); and news stories (ABA Meeting: Guidance Exists on When Student Payments Are Compensatory).

Tax Analysts consistently and promptly publishes all relevant developments regarding taxes associated with FUTA.