Instructions for Form 945-A - Rev. 12-2025 - Annual Record of Federal Tax Liability

Sep 19, 2026

Instructions for Form 945-A explain how to report federal tax liability based on payment dates or wage payment dates for related tax returns. The guidance covers future developments, key reminders affecting credits for qualified sick and family leave wages/compensation, and payroll tax credit rules tied to qualified small business research activities. It also details handling prior period adjustments, requirements when filing alongside Forms 945, CT-1, or 944, and conditions for filing an amended Form 945-A after failure-to-deposit penalties.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryForms

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time2 min

AccessFree to download

Purpose of Form 945-A

Future Developments

Reminders

General Instructions

Reporting prior period adjustments

Amended Form 945-A

Instructions for Form 945-A (Rev. December 2025) Use with the December 2024 revision of Form 945-A Annual Record of Federal Tax Liability Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code unless otherwise noted. Future Developments For the latest information about developments related to Form 945-A and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published, [go to](go to IRS.gov/)[ ](go to IRS.gov/)[IRS.gov/](go to IRS.gov/)[ ](go to IRS.gov/)[Form945A](Form945A.)[.](Form945A.) Reminders The COVID-19 related credit for qualified sick and family leave wages/compensation is limited to leave taken after March 31, 2020, and before October 1, 2021, and may no longer be claimed on Form 944 or Form CT-1. Effective for tax periods beginning after 2023, the lines used to claim the credit for qualified sick and family leave wages/compensation have been removed from Form 944 and Form CT-1 because it would be extremely rare for an employer to pay wages/ compensation after 2023 for qualified sick and family leave taken after March 31, 2020, and before October 1, 2021. Therefore, the instructions on adjusting your tax liability for the nonrefundable portion of this credit have been removed from these instructions. If you’re eligible to claim the credit for qualified sick and family leave wages/ compensation because you paid the wages/compensation after 2023 for an earlier applicable leave period, file Form 944-X, Adjusted Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund; or CT-1 X, Adjusted Employer’s Annual Railroad Retirement Tax Return or Claim for Refund, to claim the credit for qualified sick and family leave wages/ compensation for the year that you paid the wages/ compensation after you file Form 944 or CT-1 . See the Instructions for Form 944-X or the Instructions for Form CT-1 X for more information. Also see the December 2023 revision of these instructions for information on adjusting tax liability for the nonrefundable portion of the credit for qualified sick and family leave wages/compensation, which you may need to do when filing Form 944-X or CT-1 X. Qualified small business payroll tax credit for increasing research activities (Form 944 only). For tax years beginning before 2023, a qualified small business may elect to claim up to $250,000 of its credit for increasing research activities as a payroll tax credit. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the IRA) increases the election amount to $500,000 for tax years beginning after 2022. The payroll tax credit election must be made on or before the due date of the originally filed income tax return (including extensions) . The portion of the credit used against payroll taxes is allowed in the first calendar quarter beginning after the date that the qualified small business filed its income tax return. The election and determination of the credit amount that will be used against the employer’s payroll taxes are made on Form 6765, Credit for Increasing Research Activities. The amount from Form 6765 must then be reported on Form 8974, Qualified Small Business Payroll Tax Credit for Increasing Research Activities. Starting in the first quarter of 2023, the payroll tax credit is first used to reduce the employer share of social security tax up to $250,000 per quarter and any remaining credit reduces the employer share of Medicare tax for the quarter. Any remaining credit, after reducing the employer share of social security tax and the employer share of Medicare tax, is then carried forward to the next quarter. Form 8974 is used to determine the amount of the credit that can be used in the current year. The amount from Form 8974, line 12 or, if applicable, line 17, is reported on Form 944, line 8. For more information about the payroll tax credit, see the Instructions for Form 8974 and go to [IRS.gov/ResearchPayrollTC](IRS.gov/ResearchPayrollTC. Also see Adjusting Tax)[. Also see](IRS.gov/ResearchPayrollTC. Also see Adjusting Tax)[ ](I

FAQs

What is Form 945-A used for?

Form 945-A is used to report federal tax liability based on the dates payments were made or wages were paid for specified related tax returns.

What reminder limits the qualified sick and family leave credit?

The COVID-19 credit is limited to leave taken after March 31, 2020 and before October 1, 2021, and the instructions note it is generally no longer claimed on Form 944 or Form CT-1 for later periods.

How are prior period adjustments handled when filing Form 945-A?

Prior period adjustments are reported on Form 945-X, CT-1 X, or Form 944-X and are not taken into account when figuring the tax liability for the current year.

Sep 19, 2026

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