Changes to payroll tax settings for new QuickBooks Online Payroll customers

What’s changing?

QuickBooks Online Payroll is making it even easier to manage payroll taxes. Starting in November 2025, all new subscriptions will have the Automated taxes and forms feature enabled as a mandatory setting. This means your clients can enjoy a more streamlined payroll experience, with QuickBooks handling payroll tax payments and filings on their behalf. No more manual steps or worries about tax payment and filing deadlines.

What does this mean?

All new customers of QuickBooks Online Payroll that sign up on or after November 15, 2025, will not  have the option to turn off the Automated taxes and forms feature.

After a customer completes the tax setup, QuickBooks Online Payroll will automatically pay and file their taxes, by withdrawing funds at the time of run payroll or whenever their tax liabilities increase, and then paying and filing to the tax agencies by the due dates. 

Does this affect customers who are already on QuickBooks Online Payroll?

There is no change to the customers who’ve signed up for QuickBooks Online Payroll before November 15, 2025. They can continue to pay and file their taxes according to their taxes and forms preference in payroll settings.

What happens if I do not have all of my clients tax information readily available when I am setting up their QuickBooks Online Payroll account? 

QuickBooks Payroll allows you some flexibility to finish certain steps separately. However, all of the following steps must be completed for Quickbooks to pay and file the taxes automatically - 

1. Enter the tax info - employer ID, withholding deposit frequency, state unemployment rate
2. Connect a bank account
3. Authorize QuickBooks Payroll with the agency by signing any required forms and/or assigning QuickBooks Payroll as the Third-Party Administrator (TPA) on the agency website

Make sure all steps are completed before the first tax payment is due, which may only  be just 3 business days after the pay date if making semi-weekly payments to the IRS of your client’s federal withholding tax.

What does this mean for my clients who are migrating from a desktop payroll product?

They will be able to complete payroll setup just like before. There is no change to the experience of migration from QuickBooks Desktop. The only change that applies to them and all other new customers is that the option to turn off Automated taxes and forms feature wouldn’t be available.

Will QuickBooks pay and file taxes automatically?

After tax setup is completed, QuickBooks Payroll will automatically pay and file your client’s taxes, by withdrawing funds at the time of run payroll or whenever their tax liabilities increase, and then paying and filing to the tax agencies on the due dates.

QuickBooks will withdraw payroll taxes only for tax jurisdictions for which the tax setup is complete. To find out the status of your client’s tax setup for each jurisdiction, check the Automated taxes section of the Payroll Overview page.