When an employer hires someone to work for his company, the payment of compensation is the most important part for the employee and one of the most sensitive, financially speaking, for the employer. Why? Nowadays, the different payment methods and tax reforms force employers to keep up to date with IRS information and look for tools that help them to facilitate their work, without neglecting the accounting, administrative and legal aspects. In this article, we will explain what a paycheck is, and how taxes work on them. We will also give you a useful tip to make your life easier through technology that is at everyone’s fingertips.
What is a paycheck?
First things first. Let’s understand what a paycheck is so we can move on to more complex things like taxes. A paycheck is a check generated by an employer for the purpose of making payment to an employer as remuneration for work performed. There are still employers who make physical, i.e., paper checks, but it’s becoming more and more common for the deposit to be made electronically, as well as the generation of the paystub.
After the employee receives the paycheck, he/she cashes it or, in case it was an electronic payment directly to a bank account, the employee can choose to use it immediately to make personal payments.
These paychecks are issued periodically, according to the contract signed between the employee and the employer. They may be weekly, biweekly, or monthly and always, no matter the period, the contract or the amount, must be accompanied by the corresponding paystub, which contains all the information about the money paid, taxes and withholdings.
What information does a paycheck include?
If it’s a traditional paper check, it usually includes: the name and address of the company and the employee or independent contractor, check folio, amount, date the check was made, employer’s account number and bank. But when the paycheck is made electronically, the paystub contains the pay radiography, where in addition to including the above information, it also refers to the deductions per period, gross salary, net salary, local, state, and federal taxes, if applicable. Among the deductions we can find, for example, life insurance, medical expenses insurance, social security, retirement, etc. These deductions and taxes will always depend on the individual circumstances of each employee.
Taxes on Paychecks
Whether you are an employer or an employee, it’s important for both of you to know that when the employer issues a paycheck, it´s the employee’s legal obligation to withhold a percentage of the paycheck to pay income tax and Social Security. If the employer doesn’t do so or the employee doesn’t agree with it, either one is committing an administrative offense before the ISR. This amount withheld from the employee is sent by the employer to the IRS, in full, and helps the tax authorities to know during the tax return, the amount paid to the employee.
Another situation that may occur is that, in addition to these withholdings, for tax collection purposes or because of a court order directed to the employee, the employer may have to garnish part of the employee’s wages. In a few words, if the employee has any outstanding debt with the tax authorities or for any issue such as unpaid child support, any loan related to academic issues, unpaid taxes in past years, etc., the competent authorities will force the employer, by means of an order, to withhold part of the employee’s payment.
Beginning in 2022 and as almost every year, there were updates regarding payroll tax withholding, including Social Security tax and 401(k) elective deferrals. The wage base for Social Security increased to $147,000.00 and the employer and employer tax rates will remain at 6.2%, and the combined Medicare rate will also remain unchanged at 7.65%. The Medicare tax will apply to all wages in excess of the new wage base along with a 1.45% rate for employees and employers.
If annual net earnings are less than $400, no employment tax is paid. While the federal unemployment tax remains unchanged on the first $7,000 of wages.
With respect to Form W-4, related to the employee withholding certificate, it’s critical that the employer remind the employee that the withholding exemption on the form legally expires on February 15 of the year following its filing and a new Form W-4 must be filed.
For more information on tax reforms related to paychecks, we suggest you review the IRS website.
Helpful Hint
As you have read, the issue of paychecks and related updates to paychecks in tax reform is no small matter. So, the best advice we can give you is to look for the best paystub generator on the market, as it will help you generate your receipts in a formal way and at par with tax regulations. These platforms not only help you manage your payments to your employees but also give you efficient tax information and fiscal updates so that all the paychecks you issue are always well calculated and in compliance with the law.
Many companies tend to leave payroll to the accounting department, but nowadays there is no reason not to use technological tools designed to make everyone’s job easier. Whether you are a small company or a large one, the best paystub generator you hire will save you time and above all money. This way you leave the tedious work to experts and digital platforms, designed and updated, and you can take care of doing good business.
