941 Schedule B liability line item doesn't match payroll summary

Thanks for posting to the Community, @jennrobe.

Let me share some insights on how to view the 941 Schedule B liability line item.

QuickBooks is adding the tax liability showing on Schedule B for the total taxes accrued each day on paychecks for Federal Withholding, Medicare Employee, Medicare Company, Social Security Employee, and Social Security Company. It doesn't suppose to differ the COVID 19 credit.

You can run the Payroll Summary report and customize it to show the Payroll item for Federal Withholding, Medicare Company, Medicare Employee, Social Security Company, and Social Security Employee to show the amounts in Schedule B (Line 16).

Here's how:

1. Go to Reports, select Employees & Payroll, then select Payroll Summary.
2. Select Customize Report, then select the Display tab.
3. Select Last Calendar Quarter from the Dates dropdown list.
4. In the Display columns by dropdown list, select Month, then clear the Hours and Rate checkboxes.
5. Select the Filters tab.
6. Choose the Payroll Item in the Filter dropdown list, and then choose Selected payroll items in the Payroll Items dropdown list.
7. In the Payroll Item window, select Federal Withholding, Medicare Company, Medicare Employee, Social Security Company, and Social Security Employee. Clear any other selected items, then select OK.
8. Select OK to return to the Payroll Summary report.
9. Ignoring any negative signs, add up each column's amounts for Federal Withholding, Medicare Company, Medicare Employee, Social Security Company, and Social Security Employee taxes. The totals should correspond to the amounts in Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and "Total liability for quarter" of line 16.
10. You can double-click any of the numbers on the report to see what transactions contribute to their amounts.

The bulk of the COVID wages you paid for from the first to third month should total the amounts in Line 13e.

This way, I'd suggest consulting a tax accountant to help you with the amounts.

I'll be adding this article as your source to know more details about how QuickBooks populates the lines on Form 941: How QuickBooks Populates The 941. It includes links on how QuickBooks fill the other forms.

Feel free to ask questions below if you need clarifications. I'll keep my notifications open. Take care!

I ran the report and I am now 100 percent certain that Schedule B liability amounts are being reduced by COVID credits.  I was able to reconcile to the penny.  

Is this the proper treatment to carry the credit back to the beginning of the quarter?

Did you ever find an answer on this?  I have the same problem.

I don't think the credit for qualified sick and family leave wages is booking correctly to the COA.  The instructions for setting up the National Paid Leave payroll items said to use the COVID19 expense account for both the liability and expense side of the transaction.  I don't think this is right.  That's why the credit is not going to the Schedule B (I think).

ANYBODY????

I had several problems in my form.  The accounts were setup wrong to begin with due to old instructions from QB that were later changed. But I did find IRS instructions that indicated to reduce the Sch B liabilities.  I am not sure that the timing was correct but we have not taken any credits for the EPSL payments to employees yet.  

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i941sb.pdf updated in September 2020 does explain deducting the Covid Sick pay costs from the Schedule B liabilities.
Thank you Jennrobe for sending me that direction, I appreciate it!  Hours of wasted time - wish QB's "Help" was actually helpful.  Just a simple one line comment would have gone a long ways.  The top response to my various queries was "How to cancel your payroll subscription".  It was at least good for a laugh!

Did you go in and reset up the National Paid Leave in order to get it to post correctly to the 941/Schedule B?

Thanks fro checking in, @kfrem,

You can try updating your payroll version to apply the recent changes for the 941 form. Our developers recently updated it to release version 22016 which includes updates for the Federal Form. See this link for more information: Latest payroll news and updates.

Use these steps to download it:

1. Go to the Employees tab, and select Get Payroll Updates.
2. You'll see the tax table version beside the Payroll Update Info button. (Please see screenshot.)
   
3. If it's not showing the correct version, click the Download entire payroll update radio button then press Update.

If you're using the updated form and still having the Schedule B information incorrect, I suggest getting in touch with our Support Team for adjustments. 

Please note that all our representatives are currently available through chat or messaging. You must enable pop-up windows on your browser settings to launch the chat box and connect with our live agents. To get our Support, follow the steps below:

1. Open QuickBooks and click the Help menu.
2. Select QuickBooks Desktop Help.
3. On the pop-up screen select Contact us.
   
4. Click the Search for Something else button then type your concern in the Ask us anything box.
5. Hit Search then scroll down to get your contact options.

Another option to contact us is through the web. Here's how:

1. Go to this link: https://help.quickbooks.intuit.com/en_US/contact
2. Select QuickBooks Desktop then Continue as guest.
3. Pick your QuickBooks version.
4. The self-help topics are listed in the What can we help you with section.
5. For live help use the Search for something else button.

Let me know how it goes. I'll be right here if you need further help. Have a good one!

I re-setup the National Paid Leave payroll item and changed the affected paychecks to the new item.  I was finally able to balance by tying Worksheet 1 line 2a(ii) to the National Paid Leave amount on my Payroll Summary.  Everything for Q2 and Q3 seems to be correct.  

The only thing is the credit is not booking to the G/L.  I am entering a liability adjustment for that.

Hey there, @marysolmonson. 

Thanks for sharing what solutions worked for you. 

It's customers like you that make helping others easy. Sharing ideas and solutions is the best part of using the Community, and we thank you for each time you do. Please know if you need anything, we will be here for you, as you are for others. 

Have a wonderful weekend. Take care! 

Thank you so much for this response.  It was so helpful to know that the deduction was all being put into the first payroll's liability calculations!

Where is the updated article for how to correctly set up the EPSL payroll items?

You’ve come to the right place, @JCABELL.

I’d be glad to walk you through the steps in setting a payroll item for your Employee’s Paid Sick Leave (EPSL).

Before we proceed, I’d recommend working with your accountant for guidance. This way, we can ensure the accounts used in setting up this item is correct. If you’re not affiliated with one, you can visit our ProAdvisor page and we’ll help you find one from there.

Nonetheless, here’s how to create a payroll item for your EPSL. First, you’ll have to create an expense account for the paid leave:

1. Go to the Lists menu in your QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) toolbar then select Chart of Accounts.
2. Select the Account drop-down, then select New.
3. Choose Expense, then select Continue.
4. From the Account Type drop-down, select Other Expense.
5. Give your expense account a name.
6. Enter the needed details and select Save and Close.

Then set up a payroll item for the leave. You can refer to this article for the complete process: How to track paid leave and sick time for the coronavirus.

Once you’re done, you can now add the item to your employee’s paycheck and process their payroll seamlessly. To be guided, check out these links: 

• Add payroll info to QuickBooks Desktop Payroll when you already paid employees this year
• Get started with Payroll

You can always get back to me if you need further assistance setting up your payroll item. Just leave a reply with the details and I get back to you as soon as possible. Keep safe!