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Updated: August 23, 2023
When outsiders think of Louisiana, they think of Mardi Gras and Bourbon Street. As a Louisianan, you know full well that the state extends way beyond The Big Easy. You like the uniqueness of having parishes instead of counties and the slower pace of life. You cheer for good old-fashioned SEC football. You love Louisiana, and that’s why you started a small business here. But you know one thing sure ain’t easy, and that’s calculating your payroll taxes.
We definitely don’t think payroll taxes are easy, but we do want to make it as easy as possible for you, so we’ve designed a nifty payroll calculator that can figure out all of the federal and Louisiana state payroll taxes for you and your employees. All you have to do is input wage and W-4 information for each employee into the calculator and let it do the rest of the work.
First of all, let’s calculate federal payroll taxes for the sake of Uncle Sam. You can calculate all your employees’ federal withholdings, as well as any additional taxes your business is responsible for paying.
Here’s a quick rundown of the components that go into federal tax withholdings. For a more detailed explanation of all of the steps below, head on over to our comprehensive step-by-step guide.
Now that we’re done with federal taxes, let’s look at Louisiana income taxes. The state charges a progressive income tax, meaning the more money your employees make, the higher the income tax. The tax rate ranges from 1.85% on the low end to 4.25% on the high end.
Louisiana does not have any local city taxes, so all of your employees will pay only the state income tax.
As an employer in Louisiana, you have to pay unemployment insurance to the state. In 2023, the rate ranges from 0.09% to 6.2% on the first $7,700 in wages paid to each employee in a calendar year.
New employers pay between 1.16% and 2.89%, depending on the industry.
There you have it. You just made payroll taxes look easy. You’ve checked it off your to-do list so you can move onto the important things. Once each employee’s net pay is calculated (taking deductions and withholdings into consideration), you’re in the clear.
All you have to worry about is getting your employees paid on time as well as setting aside whatever you owe in FICA and UI taxes. Those numbers can add up quickly!
You will need to use Form 941 to file federal taxes quarterly, and Form 940 to report your annual FUTA tax. You can pay taxes online using the EFTPS payment system. More information about employment tax due dates can be found here.
If you would like to learn more, here are some helpful links that can help you become a payroll whiz!
Louisiana Department of Revenue (855) 307-3893 | Employer Withholding Tax | Business Registration | File & Pay Taxes Online | Withholding Tax FAQs
Louisiana Workforce Commission Department of Labor (225) 342-3111 | Unemployment Insurance | Wage and Tax Reporting Services
Louisiana employers can use the calculator at the top of this page to quickly calculate their employees’ gross pay, net pay, and deductions in a few clicks. But before getting those paychecks cut, employers can sometimes have a little more math to do. For example, do your customers ever leave tips for your employees? Keep in mind that you are responsible for withholding taxes from your workers’ paychecks based on the tips they receive. Furthermore, if an employee leaves for another company, you’ll need to calculate their final pay. So, if you need a little more help with the number-crunching, check out some of the calculators below.
Try OnPay out yourself to see how easy payroll and HR can be. To get started, just share a few basic details about your business. Our team of pros will set everything up and import your employees’ information for you.