Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/15024
Steps to Becoming an Employer You can, however, ask if a person is married or not and the ages of the person’s children—as long as you ask each and every candidate the same questions and as long as you don’t base your final hiring decision on the answers. You can also contract with a company that performs preemployment background checks. For varying fees, these reports will supply everything from criminal records to character references, but be aware these reports fall under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which requires you receive written permission to perform the background check. An employer can require that a potential employee take a physical, but not until after a job has actually been offered. If the results show the person has a health problem or disability “that will seriously affect her ability to perform the job,” the employer can withdraw the offer of employment. Forms, Forms, Forms Along with paying wages, hiring an employee means filling out the required paperwork and making required payments to state and local agencies. Most employers are required to withhold income taxes and federal unemployment taxes (which go to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and Social Security and Medicare taxes (which go to the Social Security Administration). Contact the IRS to get copies of publications 15 and 15A for a complete explanation of rules for withholding. Employers and employees are also required to verify U.S. citizenship or employment eligibility with the Immigration and Naturalization Service. You and/or your employees will need: • Your Employer Identification Number (if you need an EIN, you can request one using IRS form SS-4). • Employee’s Wage and Tax Statement, Form W-2. • Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, Form W-4. • Employment Eligibility Verification, Form I-9. • Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return, Form 941. • Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment Tax Return, Form 940 or 940EZ. • Determination of Worker Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding, Form SS-8. • Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return, Form 940. • Annual Withholding, Form 944. • The Form 944 Program allows certain “small employers” to file an annual Form 941. The program is limited to employers with annual estimated employment taxes of $1,000 or less. — Form 941-Quarterly + Depository receipts — Filed with Social Security Administration, W-2, 1099-R, and Transmittal Form W-3. — Deposit of FICA with authorized depository commercial bank. New employers make monthly deposits. If you should decide that hiring employees is not for you, you may still choose to hire independent contractors to perform certain tasks for you. Even so, there are forms to fill out (1099), and the IRS has very specific criteria for determining who is or is not an independent contractor (see “Employee or Independent,” page 173). 172 successful business handbook www.ascpskincare.com