# The semiweekly deposit schedule

> Wednesday-to-Friday paydays by the next Wednesday, Saturday-to-Tuesday by the next Friday, three business days at least — worked on real 2026 dates.

Source: https://lopifi.com/learn/payroll-tax-deposits/semiweekly-deposit-schedule
Part of: Lopifi — US GAAP books on autopilot, checked by a CPA (https://lopifi.com)

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**When are semiweekly payroll tax deposits due?** Wednesday-to-Friday paydays by the next Wednesday, Saturday-to-Tuesday by the next Friday, three business days at least — worked on real 2026 dates.

A [semiweekly depositor](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/semiweekly-schedule-depositor)'s week has two deposit periods: Wednesday to Friday, and Saturday to Tuesday. Taxes from paydays in each are due at least three business days after the period closes, a day later for each legal holiday in those three. Northwind becomes semiweekly the year after its lookback tax passes $50,000, or the day after a next-day deposit.

> “Under the semiweekly deposit schedule, deposit employment taxes for payments made on Wednesday, Thursday, and/or Friday by the following Wednesday. Deposit taxes for payments made on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and/or Tuesday by the following Friday.”

— [IRS Pub. 15 (2026), §11 — Semiweekly Deposit Schedule](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf) (PDF), The semiweekly deposit schedule

| Payday | Deposit period | Due |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Friday, May 29, 2026 | Wednesday–Friday | Wednesday, June 3, 2026 |
| Wednesday, September 30, 2026 | Wednesday–Friday | Wednesday, October 7, 2026 |
| Friday, October 2, 2026 | Wednesday–Friday | Wednesday, October 7, 2026 |
| Saturday, October 3, 2026 | Saturday–Tuesday | Friday, October 9, 2026 |
| Friday, October 9, 2026 | Wednesday–Friday | Thursday, October 15, 2026 |

Paydays and their due dates, computed by the same function that dates Northwind's deposits.

**Example — The rule, on real dates.** Two of those rows are Publication 15's own cases. A Friday, May 29 payday is due Wednesday, June 3. A Wednesday, September 30 payday and a Friday, October 2 payday share a deposit period but not a quarter, so they're two separate deposits — both due Wednesday, October 7, 2026. The October 9 payday shows the holiday rule: Monday the 12th is Columbus Day, so the three business days run Tuesday to Thursday and the deposit is due Thursday, October 15, 2026.

> **Schedule B.** A semiweekly depositor files Schedule B (Form 941) with each return, reporting its tax liability by payday rather than by month. It's how the IRS checks each deposit was on time.

**Wrong:** Combine every payday in the deposit period into one deposit, whatever the quarter.

**Right:** September 30's payday and October 2's are deposited separately, both by October 7.

Deposits follow the date wages are paid, not the period they're for.

## Where this page's rules come from

- [IRS Pub. 15 (2026), §11 — Semiweekly Deposit Schedule](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf) (PDF) — The semiweekly deposit schedule (irs)
- [IRS Pub. 15 (2026), §11 — $100,000 Next-Day Deposit Rule](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf) (PDF) — The $100,000 next-day deposit rule (irs)

- **Track:** [Payroll](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/payroll)
- **Part of:** [Payroll tax deposits](https://lopifi.com/md/learn/payroll-tax-deposits) — 5 min
- **Terms taught:** [Semiweekly schedule depositor](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/semiweekly-schedule-depositor), [Next-day deposit rule](https://lopifi.com/md/glossary/next-day-deposit-rule)
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