A Complete Guide to West Virginia Payroll Taxes

Withholding, submitting, and paying payroll taxes are all strenuous activities that you, as a business owner, must master. Payroll taxes are local and national government taxes on workers' taxable salaries. Businesses need to manage payroll taxes, and failure to do so might lead to fines.

Computing West Virginia payroll tax and withholding can be complex since the state levies a progressive income tax rather than a flat rate. It also implies that each employee must submit a state tax withholding form.

So, if you're searching for a short and easy-to-understand introduction to payroll, you've come to the right spot.

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West Virginia Payroll Laws, Taxes & Regulations

Payroll management entails more than just paying workers for their time. It also entails calculating West Virginia payroll taxes and following all the provincial and federal labor rules. Examine West Virginia's applicable laws below to help you stay in line with payroll requirements.

With a few caveats, most businesses in the United States need to pay FICA taxes. The FICA tax rate for Social Welfare is 6.2 percent, while the Medicare taxation is 1.45 percent. Both the business and the worker will be responsible for these expenditures, contributing 7.65% of the overall Social Security and Medicare payments.

West Virginia payroll taxes have three elements:

1. West Virginia State Taxes

West Virginia, like other states, has a set of taxes that employers must pay and withhold from employees' paychecks. Employees in West Virginia are not subject to municipal taxes.

2. Income Taxes

In West Virginia, you have to pay a progressive tax. Use the following table to calculate your workers' tax withholdings.

Tax Rate	Income Taxable for Singles, Couples Filing Jointly, and Heads of Family	Taxable Income for Married Filing Separately
3.0%	$0-$10,000	$0-$5,000
4.0%	$10,001-$25,000	$5,001-$12,500
4.5%	$25,001-$40,000	$12,501-$20,000
6.0%	$40,001-$60,000	$20,001-$30,000
6.5%	Over $60,000	Over $30,000

3. Employer Unemployment Taxes

In West Virginia, all companies need to pay State Unemployment Tax Act rates. The current starting pay is $12,000, with rates ranging from 1.50 percent to 8.50 percent. All new businesses in West Virginia will incur a 2.7 percent SUTA rate. Firms that pay SUTA on schedule can obtain a 5.4 percent tax credit on their FUTA payments. FUTA is typically 6% on the first $7,000 of each worker's wages; adding a 5.4 percent rebate reduces that to 0.6 percent.

Workers' Compensation

Every employer in West Virginia with one or more workers needs to have workers' compensation. Workers' insurance compensates injured employees by covering the costs of medical care and lost pay. There are several exceptions to this law, and your firm is exempt from carrying workers' compensation insurance if you fall into one of the following categories:

Your company employs less than three contract workers.
Your company employs less than six farm laborers.
You exclusively hire housekeeping staff.
Your company is a church.
Your company hires longshoremen and port personnel.

West Virginia Minimum Wage Laws

West Virginia's minimum wage is greater than the national level of $7.25 per hour. All firms in West Virginia need to pay their employees at least $8.75 per hour. Companies must pay at least $2.62 per hour to tipped workers if their tips bring them to the hourly minimum wage. Otherwise, the corporation must make up the difference.

West Virginia Overtime Provisions

The overtime restrictions in West Virginia follow the FLSA. All companies are required under the FLSA to pay employees 1.5 times their usual hourly salary for hours worked more than 40 in a workweek.

How to Pay Payroll Taxes in West Virginia?

Here's a quick primer on how to conduct payroll in West Virginia.

Step-1: Establish your company as an employer

New businesses need to use the federal Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) to get the latest Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN). To file federal taxes, you must have your FEIN.

Step-2: File a business registration with the state of West Virginia

When starting a new firm, you must register on the West Virginia Secretary of State's portal. Additionally, any firm that pays workers in West Virginia needs to enroll with the West Virginia State Tax Department.

Step-3: Design your payroll procedure

If your company is new, you must create a payroll process from the ground up. You'll need to establish when and how often you'll pay staff and what payment options you'll provide.

Step-4: Have staff complete the necessary forms

During the recruit induction program, each firm that employs workers in West Virginia must gather specific forms. Each employee is required to undergo I-9 clearance. New hires must also have a valid W-4 form and the West Virginia counterpart, Form WV IT-104. In addition, if you provide a direct deposit as a payment method, have workers sign and submit a direct deposit approval letter.

Step-5: Go over timesheets and approve them

You must collect timesheets many days in advance to conduct payroll correctly. Reviewing your nonexempt workers' timesheets allows you to talk with anyone if they have made a mistake.

Step-6: Determine the employee's gross compensation and taxes

We do not suggest calculating West Virginia payroll taxes by hand. Tax computations can get complicated, and even minor errors can lead to heavy fines. However, you may use payroll software, a calculator, or even Excel to perform basic calculations.

Step-7: Pay employee salaries, benefits, and taxes

Direct transfer is the best method of paying your staff. However, cash and paper cheques are also viable possibilities. If you use a service like Deskera, the firm should work with you to ensure simple, automated, and digital deductions.

Step-8: Make a backup of your payroll records

Keeping business documents for your organization is a wise habit. For example, businesses in West Virginia need to retain a record of all hours worked and earnings paid to each employee for at least three years, including their name, address, and date of birth.

Step-9: Submit payroll tax returns to the federal and state governments

You must pay all the West Virginia state taxes to the appropriate state agency on the due date. The due date is quarterly and can be done online at the West Virginia State Tax Commission website. In addition, you can pay federal taxes online using the EFTPS on a semi-weekly or monthly schedule.

Step-10: Finish your year-end payroll reports

Payroll in West Virginia entails more than merely paying employees regularly. Every year, you must file payroll reports, which contain all W-2 forms and 1099 forms. You must distribute these forms to workers by January 31 of the following year.

Paying Employees

You must pay workers at least twice a month. But, the gap between two paydays should not be more than 19 working days. You can opt to pay workers more than twice a month. But you must set regular paydays and advise them of any modifications beforehand.

West Virginia also permits you to pay employees in:

Cash
Paper
Direct deposit after written notice
Payroll card, only if permitted in writing by the employee

Bottom Line

West Virginia has a progressive state tax, but there are no local taxes. While most West Virginia payroll standards follow federal principles, recognizing the variances is critical to ensuring that payroll and payroll taxes are calculated appropriately.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the regulations surrounding the last paychecks of dismissed employees?

When an employee leaves, resigns, or is discharged, West Virginia law requires that you should pay their final payment no later than the usual payday. To minimize any lawsuits and litigation, we encourage making payments as quickly as possible.

Do I need to file Form W-4?

Form VA-4 is the only payroll form used in West Virginia. This is the state equivalent of the federal W-4 form.

What are the requirements for West Virginia New Hire Reporting?

Every company in West Virginia needs to report new hires and rehires to the West Virginia New Hire Reporting Center within 14 days of the employee's first day of work. This information, which must contain the employee's name, address, and Social Security number, is used to enforce child support obligations.

Key Takeaways

Payroll in West Virginia is more complicated than in many other states. West Virginia has a progressive tax, making calculating the withholding amount from employee paychecks hard.
Payroll in West Virginia necessitates the calculation of West Virginia payroll taxes and adherence to all federal and state employment rules.
Most employers in the United States need to pay FICA taxes. The current FICA tax rate for Social Security is 6.2 percent, while the Medicare tax rate is 1.45 percent.
There are three main components of West Virginia Payroll Taxes:
West Virginia State Taxes.
Income Taxes
State Employer Unemployment Taxes (SUTA)
West Virginia's minimum wage is $8.75/hour.
The overtime regulations in West Virginia work on the FLSA, which requires all companies to pay employees 1.5 times their usual hourly salary for hours worked more than 40 in a workweek.
How to Pay Payroll Taxes in West Virginia:
Establish your company as an employer.
File a business registration with the state of West Virginia.
Design your payroll procedure.
Have staff complete the necessary forms.
Go over timesheets and approve them.
Determine the employee's gross compensation and taxes.
Pay employee salaries, benefits, and taxes.
Make a backup of your payroll records.
Submit payroll tax returns to the state government and federal.
Finish your year-end payroll reports.
You need to pay a daily worker in West Virginia by law at least twice per month.
West Virginia has a progressive income tax and no local taxes