On August 6 President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders that expanded economic relief to taxpayers. One of those orders calls for employee payroll tax deferrals from September 1 through December 31, 2020.
It includes the 6.2% of the employee’s share of Social Security taxes but not the 1.45% employee’s share of Medicare taxes; and it is applicable for employees with biweekly pre-tax income of less than $4,000.
In the absence of any Treasury guidance, there were several uncertainties. On Friday, August 28, four days before the start of the deferral period, the IRS issued the 3-page Notice 2020-65, which cleared up some of the concerns but left some questions unanswered. Here’s my take on it. Be cautious, and here’s why.