South Dakota Announces Implementation of the Surcharge Tax

 

South Dakota Department of Labor announced that effective October 1, 2009 the Surcharge tax will be implemented.

Background
The Surcharge tax rate of 1.50% is projected to remain in effect until June 30, 2010. The Surcharge tax uses the unemployment insurance wage base limit of $9,500.00 for tax year 2009.  More information can be found on the agency website under Employer Updates, Surcharge.  Employers may also contact the Unemployment Insurance Division - Tax Unit, South Dakota Department of Labor at 605-626-2312, or send an email to the agency.

Frequently asked questions

Who is affected?

You may be affected if you currently make UI contributions in the State of South Dakota or if you currently have a valid SD Unemployment Insurance Division Acct No.

 

How do I setup the Surcharge Rate in QuickPayroll?

In order to accurately apply the Surcharge tax rate to only the wages that are applicable for October 1, 2009 through December 31, 2009, the Surcharge tax rate of 1.5% will need to be calculated manually after all paychecks dated for 4th Quarter 2009 have been processed. 

 

Step 1 – Generate a Payroll Item Detail report to identify the amount of wages subject to the Surcharge tax for 4th Quarter 2009.

 

1.    Click on the Reports menu, highlight Payroll Reports, and click on Item Detail.

2.    Click the Customize tab.

a.    In the Report Dates section select Custom, enter From 10/01/2009 To 12/31/2009 for fourth quarter 2009

b.    In the Columns section

                                          i.    Uncheck all default selected items

                                         ii.    Select (left margin), Entered/Last Modified, Date, Name, Payroll Item, Income Subject to Tax, Wage Base, and Amount

                                        iii.    Click OK

3.    Click the Filters tab.

a.    In the Current Choices section, highlight Payroll Item in the list, and select SD – Unemployment Company in the Payroll Item drop-down list.

Click OK 

4.    Print or Export (using the Excel tab) report.

5.    Using the amount listed in the Wage Base column of the Payroll Item Detail report, calculate the total by 1.5% in order to determine the amount of tax due for the Surcharge tax.

 

Step 2 – Identify all employees who have not met or exceeded the SD – Unemployment company wage base limit of $9,500 for 2009, for fourth quarter. 

 

1.    Calculate the Surcharge tax due for each employee by multiplying each employee’s wages reflected in the Wage Base column of the Payroll Item Detail report by 1.5%.

 

 

 

Step 3 – Process Payroll Liability Adjustments to reflect the amount due for the Surcharge tax. 

 

1.    Click the Activities menu and click on Adjust Liabilities.

2.    In the Date field, enter the date for which you are making the adjustments. In this case, 12/31/2009 for the fourth quarter.

3.    In the Effective Date field, enter the date that you want this adjustment to affect your liability balance. In this case, 12/31/2009 for the fourth quarter.

4.    In the Adjustment is for section click Employee and choose the employee’s name from the drop-down list.

5.    In the Item Name field, choose SD – Unemployment Company from the drop-down menu (Since there is not a Payroll Item for the Surcharge tax, use the SD – Unemployment Company liability to show the tax amount due for the Surcharge tax.)

6.    In the Amount field, enter the amount of the tax adjustment as a positive number. 

7.    In the Memo field, enter a note to yourself about the adjustment, i.e. adjustment due to new Surcharge tax

8.    Click Next Adjustment if additional adjustments are needed.

9.    When you have finished adjusting the tax liability for each affected employee, click OK.

 

Step 4 - Prepare your 4th Quarter 2009 Quarterly Contribution report.

  1. Use the amount calculated for the Surcharge tax when preparing your Form 21, Employer’s Quarterly Contribution, Investment Fee, and Wage Report.