Income Tax Withholding Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Who can electronically file?
Q:What’s an ACH Credit and how do I file?
Q: What is my employer's state ID (identification) number?
Q: We did not receive our North Dakota quarterly withholding return. What should we do?
Q: Did the rate of withholding change this year?
Q: I did not receive a Form W-2 from my employer. What should I do?
Q: Who do I contact for assistance?
Q: Who can electronically file?
A: Any employer who currently files income tax withholding returns is eligible to voluntarily file using one of the electronic filing options.
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Q: What’s an ACH Credit and how do I file?
A: An ACH Credit is a banking term for the electronic transfer of funds where you initiate the transfer from your bank account to the State's account. This is commonly referred to as EFT (i.e., electronic funds transfer). Any transaction costs for the ACH credit are paid by you.
Essential information must be provided with an ACH credit payment submitted to the Commissioner’s banking institution. This information is provided in a standard banking formatted addenda record, which is part of the EFT transaction. The addenda record provides the return information necessary to identify the payment and properly post it to your withholding tax account.
Before you are authorized to take advantage of the EFT option, you will be required to complete an application (Form 301-EF) - (57kb pdf) and submit it to our office. A "pre-note" ACH credit (zero transaction) is required of you prior to approving your application. This is to test the accuracy of account numbers, transit routing numbers, and formats of the addenda records.
Refer to the Withholding ACH Credit E-file Handbook - (177kb pdf) for additional information.
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Q: What is my employer's state ID (identification) number?
A: For North Dakota income tax withholding purposes, your employer's state ID number is the same as your federal employer's identification number assigned to you by the Internal Revenue Service with a two-digit suffix (e.g.,"01") added at the end of it. For example, if your federal employer's identification number is 45-9999999, your employer's state ID number will be 459999999-01 for North Dakota income tax withholding purposes.
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Q: We did not receive our North Dakota quarterly withholding return. What should we do?
A: A North Dakota quarterly withholding return (Form 306) is mailed to every registered employer before the end of the calendar quarter for which it is due. If you do not receive your quarterly return by the end of the calendar quarter, you should contact the North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner to obtain another one.
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Q: Did the rate of withholding change this year?
A: 2001 North Dakota legislation replaced the short form method and tax rate for individuals with a new income tax system. Created by the Income Tax Revision Act of 2001 (HB 1399), the new system was put into place to prevent a state revenue shortfall that would result from the federal income tax rate cuts. A change in the North Dakota income tax withholding rate is effective beginning January 1, 2002. North Dakota income tax law authorizes the Tax Commissioner to determine the method and rate for calculating the amount of the North Dakota income tax to withhold from an employee's wages.
The amount of North Dakota income tax to withhold can be determined using one of three methods. Detailed information on the three methods is contained in a separate publication, North Dakota Income Tax Withholding Rates and Instructions for Wages Paid, and Withholding Tables.
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Q: I did not receive a Form W-2 from my employer. What should I do?
A: In general, federal tax law requires employers to provide a Form W-2 to each employee at the end of each calendar year. Employers must give or mail the W-2s to employees no later than January 31 following the end of the calendar year. If you do not receive your W-2, you should do the following:
First, contact your employer to find out if the W-2s have been prepared and issued. If your employer mailed the W-2s, you may not have received your W-2 because of an incorrect or incomplete address. There may also be other reasons for not receiving your W-2 that may be easily taken care of by contacting the employer. After contacting your employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for your employer to issue or remail the W-2.
Second, if you still do not receive your W-2 after contacting your employer, contact the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by calling 1-800-829-1040, but do not contact the IRS before February 16. Before you call the IRS, write down the following information which the IRS will ask you to provide:
1. Your employer's name and complete address, employer identification number (if known), and telephone number;
2. Your name, address, social security number, and telephone number; and
3. An estimate of the wages paid to you by the employer, the federal income tax withheld, and the period of time you worked for the employer during the year.
You will need to give this information to the IRS so that they can prepare a Form 4852, Substitute For A Missing Form W-2. The IRS will mail a copy of Form 4852 to you. You should use the Form 4852 instead of your W-2 only if necessary to file your federal income tax return on time. Note that the use of a Form 4852 instead of the actual W-2 may delay your federal income tax refund while the information on the Form 4852 is verified by the IRS.
The information on the Form 4852 will be accepted for North Dakota income tax purposes. You should make a copy of the Form 4852 received from the IRS to attach to your North Dakota income tax return. Be sure to keep a copy of Form 4852 for your own records.
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Q: Who do I Contact for Assistance?
A: For walk-in assistance or written correspondence:
Withholding Tax Section
Office of State Tax Commissioner
State Capitol
600 E Boulevard Ave
Bismarck ND 58505-0599
Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Central Time, Mon. – Fri., excluding holidays
Telephone Assistance:
(701) 328-3125
Speech or hearing impaired Relay North Dakota (800) 366-6888 (ask for (701) 328-3125)
E-mail:withhold@nd.gov
