2009 Stimulus Check

stimulus package »”>Stimulus Package Changes Federal Income Tax Withholdings

President Obama has signed the stimulus package, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, into law.  What does this mean for employers?  The stimulus package does include the new, Making Work Pay Tax Credit, a change to the federal tax withholdings for employees. Employers are being asked to implement the changes as soon as possible no later than April 1, 2009. These changes will increase the paychecks of the American workers.

Employers can let their employees know that they, the employee, do not have to do anything to receive this benefit. They do not have to fill out a new W-4. The tax credit for those who qualify will be automatic.

For the employers who use a payroll software to calculate the federal tax withholdings you should be receiving the newly updated tax tables from your software provider.  I would urge small business owners who are still doing payroll by hand to start using a payroll software solution. Payroll software can offer serious benefits, from increased payroll preparation efficiency to tangible cost savings.

Small business owners can obtain inexpensive, straightforward payroll software fairly easily.  The software should include automatic calculations and customizable income, deductions and tax categories. Basic federal forms and business reports are included in some low cost payroll software. 

With the stimulus package in the forefront of our thoughts another detail to think about is the cost of updates. Payroll solutions, that include tax updates at no cost, can be found.

A Payroll Software you may want to take a look at is Payroll Mate. Payroll Mate is a user friendly comprehensive payroll solution. This particular software has been updated to include the new federal withholding tables released by the IRS.

A free demo of the software is available here: Payroll Software Download