Year-end checklist for QuickBooks Online Payroll

Learn how you can wrap up this year’s payroll and prepare for the next with QuickBooks Online Payroll Core, Premium, or Elite.

Whether it’s filing your taxes or sending out your employees’ W-2s, there are several things you need to get done. Go over these important dates and tasks as you plan your year-end payroll work.

• December
• January
  • Automate taxes and forms turned on
  • Automate taxes and forms turned off

2024

• Preview your W-2s before they’re sent to the government and your employees. If you find an error, fix it and avoid a W-2C.
• Report company-paid healthcare on your employees' W-2s if needed.

December 30 & 31, 2024

Run final payroll for 2024

• Make sure employee wages and benefits are correct.
• If you use direct deposit, send off the year's final paychecks and pay employee bonuses.
• Report all employee paychecks, including handwritten, commission, termination, and bonus checks.
• Add the year's final fringe benefits to paychecks.
• Add any commissions your employees earned.
• Contribute to your employee’s retirement.

Order year-end supplies

• Subscribe to our labor law compliance posters. This way you know when the law changes.

Before the first payroll of 2025

Invite your employees to view their W-2s online

• Invite your employees to QuickBooks Workforce so they can see their pay stubs and W-2s online. They can also choose to go paperless and opt out of a mailed copy of their W-2.

Review and update employee information

• Ask employees to review and update W-4 and state withholding forms.
• Update employee information, such as SSNs, legal names, and addresses, and secondary mailing addresses.
• Confirm your employees can import their W-2 directly into their TurboTax account.
• Review and update any changes to your federal deposit and filing schedule.
• Review vacation hours, including used and unused time.

Review and update company information

• Run reports for year-end: employee details, payroll details, taxes, and wage summary.
• Send us any tax notices you may have received.

Keep an eye out for federal and state tax changes

• Review and update your state unemployment insurance rate for the new year.
• Review and update your tax deposit schedules.

2025

The dates that matter to you in 2025 depend if you have Automate taxes and forms turned on.

QuickBooks Online Payroll will automatically pay and file your state and payroll taxes (including year-end flings) only if Automate taxes and forms is turned on. If you aren't sure, check your automatic tax payments and form filing status first.

Need 1099s? 1099s aren’t automatically created for you. If you are in need of 1099s for contractors, select the Payroll menu, then Contractors and Prepare 1099s for the required steps.

Choose your tax payment status to learn more:

• Automate taxes and forms turned on
• Automate taxes and forms turned off

Automate taxes and forms ON

January 15, 2025

• W-2 forms start to become available in your product.

January 16 through January 31, 2025

• W-2 forms are mailed to employees by USPS if you opted in to have them sent. Fees apply.

January 27, 2025

• If you use our 1099 e-file service, e-file forms on or before January 27, before 5:00 PM PT so they can be processed and postmarked to your contractors by January 31. Fees may apply when you e-file or mail your 1099s.

January 31, 2025

• 1099s
  • If you use our 1099 e-file service by January 27, and choose to have 1099s forms mailed, the 1099 forms will be mailed to your contractors to the addresses indicated in the contractor's profile by January 31. Fees may apply when you e-file or mail your 1099s.
  • If you haven't already filed, use our e-file service for your 1099-NEC forms before 5:00 PM PT for timely submission to the IRS. Fees may apply.
  • If you don't use e-file, 1099s must be mailed to contractors.
• W-2s
  • If you opted in for mailed W-2 copies, W-2 forms will be mailed to your employees to the addresses indicated in the employee profile by January 31. Fees apply.
• Review your tax forms and payments within QuickBooks Online.

February 28 and March 31, 2025

• If you use our 1099 e-file service, e-file your 1099-MISC by March 27 so they can be processed by March 31.
• If you don't use 1099 e-file, the 1099-MISC must be mailed to IRS by February 28.

Automate taxes and forms OFF

January 1, 2025

• W-2 forms will be available for you to print and file in your product.

January 27, 2025

• If you use our 1099 e-file service, e-file your forms on or before January 27 before 5:00 PM PT so they can be processed and postmarked to your contractors by January 31. Fees may apply when you e-file or mail your 1099s.
• Review and file federal forms and make tax payments, such as Forms 941/944 or 940.
• Review and file state forms and make tax payments (form names, due dates, and lead times vary by state).

January 30, 2025

• E-file your W-2s before 5:00 PM PT so they can be processed by January 31.

January 31, 2025

• 1099s
  • If you use our 1099 e-file service by January 27, and choose to have 1099s mailed, the 1099 forms will be mailed to your contractors to the addresses indicated in the contractor's profile by January 31. Fees may apply when you e-file or mail your 1099s. If you don't use e-file, 1099s must be mailed by this date to contractors.
  • If you haven't already filed, e-file your 1099-NEC forms before 5:00 PM PT for timely submission to the IRS.
  • If you don't use e-file, 1099s must be mailed to contractors.
• W-2s
  • Send W-2s to your employees.

February 28 and March 31, 2025

• If you use our 1099 e-file service, e-file your 1099-MISC by March 27 so they can be processed by March 31.
• If you don't use 1099 e-file, the 1099-MISC must be mailed to IRS by February 28.