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From the brief of Tuesday, October 20, 2026 · No. 9

From the daily brief

IRS: Q3 Form 941 is due Nov. 2, or Nov. 10 if every deposit was on time

Oct. 31 falls on a Saturday, so the filing date moves to Monday. A check of your deposits now decides which date you get.

By Carter Josephson · · 1 min read

What happened

The IRS tax calendar lists the third-quarter Form 941 as due Nov. 2, 2026, because Oct. 31 is a Saturday. Employers who made all their payroll tax deposits on time and paid in full have until Nov. 10.

What it means for a 10-to-50-person business

The Nov. 10 grace date only applies if every deposit for the quarter went in on time and in full. Take a 20-person electrical contractor with $9,000 in federal payroll tax a month. It deposits monthly by the 15th. If it missed the Sept. 15 deposit by a week, it loses the extra eight days and the return is due Nov. 2. Late deposits carry penalties of 2% to 15% of the amount, depending on how late. Late filing adds its own penalty on top. If your payroll provider files for you, the effect on you is small: confirm the filing is queued and that each deposit shows as paid on your IRS business account. The same calendar lists Form 2290 (heavy vehicle use tax) on Nov. 2 for trucks of 55,000 pounds or more first used in September. Most service fleets are lighter and can ignore that line.

What to do
Try it

This week, check that all three Q3 deposits show as paid, and ask your payroll provider whether the 941 files on Nov. 2 or Nov. 10.

What it costs
What it costs
Checking Q3 deposits against your IRS account
30 min
Asking your payroll provider to confirm filing date
10 min
Doing nothing
$0 if a provider files on time; a missed Nov. 2 date means a late-filing penalty of 5% of tax due per month, plus interest
Sources
irs.gov (primary) · IRS Publication 509 (2026), Tax Calendars

Questions owners ask

What if my provider files my 941?

The legal duty is still yours. Ask them to confirm the date and that deposits were made on time.

Do I file quarterly if I use Form 944?

No. Form 944 filers follow the annual schedule. This item covers Form 941 filers.

Three to five of these, every weekday morning.

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