What California Form DE 9 Rev. 1 (2024) Is For
Official purpose
The California Form DE 9 (Quarterly Contribution Return and Report of Wages) is the official document employers use to reconcile their payroll taxes with the state each quarter. Think of it as your quarterly check-in with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) where you confirm that the payroll tax deposits you made during the quarter match up with the actual wages you paid your employees.
What payments the form reports
When you file the DE 9, you're reporting four main types of payments: Unemployment Insurance (UI) contributions that you as the employer pay; Employment Training Tax (ETT) that funds worker training programs; State Disability Insurance (SDI) that you withhold from employee paychecks; and California Personal Income Tax (PIT) that you also withhold from employees. The form compares what you should have paid based on employee wages against what you actually deposited throughout the quarter.
How DE 9 works with DE 9C
Importantly, the DE 9 doesn't travel alone. You must file it together with Form DE 9C (the "Continuation"), which lists the detailed wage information for each individual employee. The DE 9 provides the totals and tax calculations, while the DE 9C shows the employee-by-employee breakdown. Together, these forms give California a complete picture of your quarterly payroll.
Who must file
Every employer registered with California who has paid wages over one hundred dollars in any calendar quarter must file a DE 9 each quarter, even during quarters when you paid no wages at all. If you had zero payroll for a quarter, you still file the forms but indicate "No Wages Paid This Quarter." The state requires this because you remain an active employer account until you officially close your business or notify the EDD you no longer have employees.
When You’d Use California Form DE 9 Rev. 1 (2024)
Regular quarterly filing deadlines
The standard filing schedule follows the calendar quarters, with due dates falling on the first day of the month following each quarter's end. For the first quarter covering January through March, the DE 9 is due April 1st. The second quarter (April through June) is due July 1st. Third quarter (July through September) is due October 1st, and the fourth quarter (October through December) is due the following January 1st. However, California gives you a grace period—you're not considered delinquent until the last day of that following month. So while the April 1st due date is official, you're not penalized until May 1st if the form isn't postmarked or electronically received.
Weekend, holiday, and filing-timing rules
When a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday, the deadline automatically extends to the next business day. For electronic filings, the EDD uses the date and time the form was completed and transmitted. For any remaining paper filings (which require special permission), the postmark date determines timeliness.
Late filing situations
If you file late—meaning after the delinquency deadline—you'll face penalties and interest charges. Late filing triggers a penalty based on the unpaid tax amount plus daily accumulating interest at rates the EDD updates periodically. If you're more than fifteen days late responding to an EDD demand for the DE 9C wage report, you face an additional twenty-dollar penalty for each employee you failed to report on time.
Amended filing situations
For amended filings, you use the Quarterly Contribution and Wage Adjustment Form (DE 9ADJ). You might need to file an amendment because you discovered errors in wages reported, made mistakes in employee names or Social Security numbers, incorrectly calculated taxes, forgot to report an employee, or reported someone who shouldn't have been included. California requires you to file adjustments for the specific quarter in which the error originally occurred—you cannot bundle multiple quarters together on one adjustment form. The statute of limitations for claiming refunds is three years from the last timely filing date for that quarter, six months after an assessment becomes final, or sixty days from the date of overpayment, whichever comes later.
Normas o detalles importantes para 2024
Electronic filing is mandatory
California mandates electronic filing for virtually all employers. Since January 1, 2018, you must submit your DE 9, DE 9C, and all payroll tax deposits electronically through the EDD's e-Services for Business portal or other approved electronic methods. Filing paper forms without an approved waiver automatically triggers a fifty-dollar noncompliance penalty per return, even if you had zero payroll to report. The state eliminated paper forms specifically to encourage electronic compliance.
Accuracy requirements
The form requires absolute accuracy in three critical areas: wage calculations, employee identification, and tax computations. For Unemployment Insurance, you report only wages up to the annual taxable wage limit per employee (which changes yearly and is pre-printed on your form). For State Disability Insurance, a similar per-employee annual cap applies. Your tax rates for UI, ETT, and SDI appear as percentages on the preprinted form, though UI rates vary by employer based on your experience rating—essentially your history of former employees claiming unemployment benefits.
Deposit reconciliation rules
One often-misunderstood rule involves the separation between tax deposits during the quarter and the final reconciliation on the DE 9. Throughout the quarter, you make tax deposits using Form DE 88 based on your deposit schedule (which depends on how much tax you withhold). When you file the DE 9 at quarter's end, it compares your total required taxes for the quarter against everything you deposited. If you paid too much, the EDD automatically processes a refund. If you underpaid, you must immediately submit the difference along with penalties and interest—but crucially, you mail that payment separately to a different address to avoid processing delays.
Employee withholding refund limitations
California doesn't allow you to refund overpaid State Disability Insurance or Personal Income Tax directly to yourself unless you first refunded those amounts to the affected employees. This protects workers because SDI and PIT are employee contributions, not employer costs. If you withheld too much SDI from an employee's paycheck, you must refund that employee before claiming a credit from the state. For PIT overpayments where you've already issued W-2 forms to employees, you generally cannot get refunds—the employee claims the credit when filing their personal California income tax return.
Signature requirement
Every DE 9 requires a signature from the employer or an authorized individual, along with their title, phone number, and the date signed. Without a proper signature and declaration, the EDD will not process your filing, treating it as incomplete.
Paso a paso (visión general)
Before you start
Before you start: Gather your quarterly records including total gross wages paid to all employees, the amount of wages subject to UI (remember the per-employee annual cap), wages subject to SDI (which has its own cap), California Personal Income Tax you withheld, and copies of all deposit forms (DE 88) you submitted during the quarter. Also have available your Federal Employer Identification Number and your California employer account number.
Filing process
Step one—Access the form electronically
Step one—Access the form electronically: Log into e-Services for Business at the EDD website using your account credentials. Navigate to the filing section and select the appropriate quarter you're reporting. The system will display your preprinted information including your business name, address, account number, your UI rate, ETT rate, and SDI rate, plus the taxable wage limits for the year.
Step two—Report your wages
Step two—Report your wages: Enter the total subject wages you paid during the quarter in Item C. This represents all compensation subject to California payroll taxes. Next, complete Item D for Unemployment Insurance—the system may pre-fill the UI taxable wage base, and you enter your UI taxable wages for the quarter (capped per employee). Multiply your UI rate by these wages to calculate your UI contributions. For Item E, use the same UI taxable wages and multiply by the ETT rate (typically 0.1 percent) to determine Employment Training Tax.
Step three—Calculate SDI and PIT
Step three—Calculate SDI and PIT: In Item F, enter your SDI taxable wages for the quarter (again subject to the per-employee annual cap, which differs from the UI cap). Multiply by the SDI rate to calculate employee contributions you withheld. For Item G, enter the total California Personal Income Tax you withheld from all employees during the quarter.
Step four—Reconcile your deposits
Step four—Reconcile your deposits: Add together Items D3, E2, F3, and G to get your subtotal (Item H). This is your total liability for the quarter. In Item I, enter the total contributions and withholdings you actually paid during the quarter via all your DE 88 deposits—but do not include any penalty or interest payments you may have made. Subtract Item I from Item H to determine Item J, your total taxes due or overpaid.
Step five—Handle over/underpayments
Step five—Handle over/underpayments: If Item J shows you overpaid, the EDD will automatically issue a refund once they process your return. If Item J shows you owe additional taxes, you must make a payment but do not include it with your DE 9 filing—instead, prepare a separate Payroll Tax Deposit (DE 88) and mail it to the designated payment processing address. Calculate any applicable penalty (fifteen percent of the underpayment for periods beginning third quarter 2014) and interest based on current daily rates.
Step six—Complete the DE 9C simultaneously
Step six—Complete the DE 9C simultaneously: While working on your DE 9, you must also complete the DE 9C listing each employee who worked during the quarter. Include their Social Security number, full name, total wages subject to UI/SDI taxes, PIT wages, PIT withheld, and the appropriate wage plan code (indicating their employee category). The grand totals on your DE 9C must match the amounts you reported on your DE 9.
Step seven—Review and submit
Step seven—Review and submit: Before transmitting, carefully verify all calculations, especially that your DE 9 totals match your DE 9C totals. Check employee names and Social Security numbers for accuracy, as errors here can affect worker unemployment and disability benefit eligibility later. Complete the declaration section with signature, title, phone number, and date. Submit both forms together electronically—the system won't accept one without the other.
Errores comunes y cómo evitarlos
Forgetting to file when you have no payroll
Forgetting to file when you have no payroll: Many employers mistakenly think that having zero employees or paying no wages means they don't need to file. California requires you to submit both the DE 9 and DE 9C even for no-payroll quarters. Use e-Services to indicate "No Wages Paid This Quarter" and complete your electronic filing. Failing to file a no-payroll report results in penalty notices and demands from the EDD. If you genuinely don't expect to pay any wages within the next year, formally notify the EDD to inactivate your account rather than simply not filing.
Mixing up taxable wage caps
Mixing up taxable wage caps: The annual taxable wage limits differ between Unemployment Insurance and State Disability Insurance, and they change each year. Many employers mistakenly use the same cap for both or forget to track when individual employees exceed the limit mid-year. Keep running totals for each employee throughout the year. Once an employee's wages exceed the UI cap, their additional wages that quarter aren't subject to UI or ETT. The SDI cap is different and must be tracked separately. Using the wrong cap means you over-report or under-report taxes, requiring later amendments.
Mismatching DE 9 totals with DE 9C details
Mismatching DE 9 totals with DE 9C details: Your DE 9 form shows aggregate totals while your DE 9C lists individual employee details. These must reconcile perfectly—the sum of all employee wages on the DE 9C must equal the total wages on the DE 9, and the sum of PIT withheld from all employees on the DE 9C must match the PIT total on the DE 9. Employers sometimes report different amounts on the two forms, which triggers EDD inquiries and delays processing. Before submitting, add up your DE 9C entries and confirm they match your DE 9 totals.
Claiming refunds for employee withholdings without refunding employees first
Claiming refunds for employee withholdings without refunding employees first: If you withheld too much State Disability Insurance or Personal Income Tax from employees, you cannot simply claim that money back from the state. California law requires you to first refund the erroneous withholding to the affected employees, then claim your credit. Many employers file adjustment forms requesting SDI or PIT refunds without having refunded employees, causing the EDD to deny the adjustment. Document any employee refunds you make with copies of checks or direct deposit records before filing your DE 9ADJ.
Filing paper returns without authorization
Filing paper returns without authorization: Since the e-file mandate began, California automatically penalizes any paper filing of the DE 9 or DE 9C unless you have an approved waiver for specific circumstances like lack of internet access. Some employers, particularly small businesses or those uncomfortable with technology, still attempt to mail paper forms. This triggers an immediate fifty-dollar penalty per form. Even if you previously filed paper forms years ago, that's no longer permitted. Contact the EDD to request a waiver if you genuinely cannot file electronically, but expect limited approval.
Entering negative amounts or making corrections incorrectly
Entering negative amounts or making corrections incorrectly: When you discover errors in a previously filed quarter, some employers try to offset those errors by entering negative amounts in a current quarter's filing. California's system doesn't accept negative values. Instead, file a DE 9ADJ adjustment form for the specific quarter where the error occurred, showing what you originally reported and what the correct figures should have been. Each quarter stands alone—you cannot use a later quarter to "fix" an earlier quarter's mistakes.
Missing deposit deadlines before the quarterly filing
Missing deposit deadlines before the quarterly filing: The DE 9 is a reconciliation of taxes you should have already deposited throughout the quarter using Form DE 88. Employers sometimes wait until quarter-end to pay all their taxes with the DE 9 filing. California requires periodic deposits during the quarter based on your payment schedule—monthly, semi-monthly, or within certain days of paydays depending on your withholding amounts. Filing your DE 9 on time doesn't excuse late deposits during the quarter, which carry their own fifteen-percent penalty plus interest.
¿Qué ocurre después de presentar la solicitud?
Standard processing and refunds
The EDD's computer systems receive and process your electronic DE 9 and DE 9C submission within their standard processing timeframe, typically several weeks. The system automatically reconciles the taxes you reported owing against the deposits you made throughout the quarter. If your DE 9 shows you overpaid—meaning your deposits exceeded your actual tax liability—the EDD initiates an automatic refund process. You'll receive a refund check or direct deposit for the overpayment amount, usually within four to six weeks after filing, though timing can vary based on processing volume. Credits under ten dollars are not automatically refunded unless you specifically request them in writing.
Underpayments, penalties, and statements of account
If your filing reveals you underpaid and owe additional taxes, interest begins accruing immediately from the original due date. California charges interest at rates that change periodically based on statutory formulas tied to federal interest rates. You should have included payment with a separate DE 88 deposit form when you discovered the deficiency. If you didn't pay simultaneously with filing, the EDD will send you a Statement of Account (Form DE 2176) detailing your outstanding balance, including the base tax amount, the fifteen-percent late payment penalty, and accumulated interest through the statement date. This statement provides payment instructions and warns that failure to pay may result in collection actions.
If everything was filed correctly
For employers who file timely and accurately with no balance due or a small overpayment, you typically won't hear from the EDD beyond any refund notification. Your filing becomes part of your permanent account record, and the employee wage information transfers to worker records for future unemployment and disability benefit determinations. When your former employees later claim unemployment benefits, the EDD references these quarterly wage reports to calculate benefit amounts and determine eligibility.
Demand notices and estimated assessments
If you miss a filing deadline or the EDD doesn't receive your DE 9 and DE 9C by the delinquency date, you'll receive a written demand notice. This notice specifies the missing quarter and provides a new deadline, usually fifteen days from the demand date. If you don't respond to the demand within that window, the twenty-dollar per-employee penalty kicks in for unreported workers on the DE 9C, in addition to percentage-based penalties on unpaid taxes. Continued non-filing can escalate to estimated assessments where the EDD calculates what they believe you owe based on previous quarters or industry averages, often overestimating to protect the state's interests.
Liens and collections for seriously delinquent accounts
For seriously delinquent accounts with unpaid balances, California may issue a state tax lien against your business. This lien gets recorded at both the county recorder's office and with the Secretary of State, becoming public record. Liens attach to your business assets and appear in credit reports, potentially affecting your ability to secure financing or conduct normal business operations. The EDD can also pursue collection actions including bank levies, seizure of assets, and referral to external collection agencies.
Filing corrections after submission
If you later discover errors in a filed DE 9 or DE 9C, you can submit corrections through e-Services for Business by accessing the original filing and creating an adjustment, or by completing and mailing a paper DE 9ADJ form. The EDD processes adjustments similarly to original filings, recalculating your liability and either issuing additional refunds or billing for additional taxes due. For adjustments resulting in refund claims, remember the three-year statute of limitations—waiting too long means losing your ability to recover overpayments.
Preguntas frecuentes
Common questions
I didn't have any employees this quarter and paid no wages—do I still need to file the DE 9?
Yes, California requires you to file both the DE 9 and DE 9C every quarter as long as your employer account remains active, even during quarters with zero payroll. Use the electronic filing system to indicate no wages were paid for the quarter. If you file a paper "no payroll" return without authorization, you'll face the fifty-dollar noncompliance penalty despite having nothing to report. If you genuinely don't expect to have employees for the next year or longer, you can request to inactivate your account through e-Services for Business or by writing to the EDD, which eliminates the quarterly filing requirement until you notify them you're hiring again.
What's the difference between the due date and the delinquency date on the form?
The official due date for each quarter's DE 9 is the first day of the month following the quarter end (April 1, July 1, October 1, January 1), but California provides a grace period. You're not considered delinquent and won't face penalties until the last day of that same month (April 30, July 31, October 31, or January 31/February 1 depending on the quarter). This gives you essentially a full month to file after the quarter ends. However, it's best practice to file by the original due date rather than relying on the grace period, as late filing—even within the grace period—can trigger interest charges on any amounts owed.
I made a mistake on last quarter's DE 9 that I just discovered—how do I fix it?
You must file an adjustment using either e-Services for Business or the paper Quarterly Contribution and Wage Adjustment Form (DE 9ADJ). Log into e-Services, locate the quarter with the error, and select the option to adjust the previously filed return. The system will show what you originally reported and allow you to enter the corrected amounts along with an explanation. If you're adjusting both taxes and employee wage details, you'll need to adjust both the DE 9 and DE 9C portions. For paper adjustments, complete the DE 9ADJ showing the originally reported figures, the correct figures, and the differences, then mail it to the EDD's processing center. Don't try to offset the error in the current quarter's filing—each quarter must be corrected individually.
Can I get a refund if I withheld too much State Disability Insurance or Personal Income Tax from my employees?
This depends on whether you've already issued W-2 forms and whether you refunded the employees. For SDI overwithholding, you must first refund the excess deductions to the affected employees before the EDD will refund you—SDI is an employee contribution, not an employer expense, so the state won't return it to you unless the employees got their money back. For PIT overwithholding, if you've already issued W-2 forms showing the incorrect (higher) withholding amount, don't change the W-2 and don't seek a refund from the EDD. Your employees will claim the credit when they file their California personal income tax returns with the Franchise Tax Board. You can only adjust PIT on a DE 9ADJ if you're still in the same calendar year or early in the following year before issuing W-2 forms.
What happens if I close my business in the middle of a quarter?
You must file your final DE 9 and DE 9C within ten days of closing your business to avoid penalties, rather than waiting until the normal quarterly deadline. On the DE 9, check the box for "Out of Business/No Employees" and enter the specific date you closed in the designated field. Report all wages paid through your closing date and calculate your tax liability for that partial quarter. Submit any final tax payment due with a separate DE 88 deposit form. The EDD will send you a confirmation letter acknowledging your account closure. If you close mid-quarter but don't file within ten days, you'll face penalties even though you're no longer operating.
I operate in multiple states—do I need to report all employee wages to California or just California wages?
Report only wages for work performed in California and wages paid to California residents for work performed outside California that's localized to a California base. If you have employees who work in multiple states, you must track their wages by state and report only the California-attributable portion on your DE 9. Similarly, only California Personal Income Tax withholding gets reported on the DE 9—withholding for other states doesn't belong on this form. If an employee moves from California to another state mid-quarter or vice versa, prorate their wages based on where they worked during the quarter. The California Employer's Guide (DE 44) provides detailed guidance on multi-state allocation rules.
How long do I have to keep records related to my DE 9 filings?
California law requires employers to maintain payroll records for at least four years, though the recommended practice is to keep them longer. Specifically, retain detailed payroll registers showing individual employee wage payments, tax withholding calculations, copies of all filed DE 9 and DE 9C forms, DE 88 deposit forms, bank records showing tax payments, and any correspondence with the EDD. The four-year requirement protects you during potential audits, as the EDD can examine prior quarters within the statute of limitations. For any quarters where you filed adjustments or had disputes, keeping records beyond four years is advisable in case issues resurface. Electronic records are acceptable if they're readily accessible and reproducible in paper format upon request.
