The Rhode Island Division of Taxation has released the state income tax withholding tables for tax year 2019. A reproduction of the annual percentage method table in effect for wages paid after December 31, 2018 begins on page 2 of this document.

Calendar year 2018 Forms W-2 and RI-W3, Reconciliation of Personal Income Tax Withheld by Employers, are due by January 31, 2019.

A list of the 2019 withholding tax filing deadlines is available here.

For more information on Rhode Island withholding tax, call +1 401 574 8829 or see the Division's website.

Supplemental wages

The supplemental withholding rate for 2019 continues at 5.99%.

Supplemental wages are compensation paid in addition to an employee's regular wages. They include, but are not limited to, bonuses, commissions, overtime pay, payments for accumulated sick leave, severance pay, awards, prizes, back pay and retroactive pay increases for current employees, and payments for nondeductible moving expenses. Other payments subject to the supplemental wage rules include taxable fringe benefits and expense allowances paid under a nonaccountable plan. How an employer withholds on supplemental payments depends on whether the supplemental payment is identified as a separate payment from regular wages.

If supplemental wages, such as bonuses, commission, overtime pay and back pay are paid with regular wages, the income tax to be withheld must be determined as if the total were a single wage payment for the regular payroll period. However, if the supplemental wages are paid separately, the employer may add the supplemental wages to the regular wages paid to the employee for the last preceding payroll period, determine the amount to be withheld as if the aggregate amount were a single payment, subtract the tax withheld for the last preceding payroll period and withhold the remaining tax from the supplemental wage payment. (2019 Rhode Island Employer's Income Tax Withholding Tables, Rhode Island Division of Taxation, December 2018.)

Form RI W-4

Rhode Island does not require employers to obtain a separate certificate showing the number of dependents or other personal exemptions claimed by an employee. In computing both the federal withholding and the Rhode Island withholding for employees, the employer may continue to rely on the federal Form W-4 (note, however, that if an individual's annual wages exceed $227,050, their exemption amount will be phased out and be equal to zero). Employees electing additional federal withholding may elect additional Rhode Island withholding. Employees electing additional Rhode Island withholding should do so on Form RI W-4. The 2019 Form RI W-4, which the employer is required to keep on file, is included in the 2019 employer withholding booklet and available separately here.

Rhode Island annual income tax withholding tables (percentage method) for wages paid on or after January 1, 2019

The steps in computing the income tax to be withheld are as follows:

1. Multiply the amount of one withholding exemption ($1,000 annually for 2019) by the number of exemptions and allowances claimed by the employee — note, however, that if the employee earns more than $227,050 in annual wages for calendar year 2019, no exemption is allowed.
2. Subtract the amount from the employee's wages.
3. Determine the amount to be withheld from the appropriate table (note that there are not separate tables for single and married taxpayers).

Rhode Island 2018 Form W-2 reporting

Calendar year 2018 Forms W-2 and RI-W3 are due to the Division?by January 31, 2019.

Employers?required to?submit?annual W-2 information electronically to the SSA and?that have?a minimum of 25 employees in the state?must?file W-2 information?with the Division on?electronic media.??

Employers may submit Forms W-2 on CD-ROM, DVD or through secure File Transfer Protocol (FTP). For information and setup of secure FTP transmissions, employers should send an email to Tax.ProdControl@tax.ri.gov.

All electronic submissions are required to use the SSA's EFW2 format, whether submitting on CD-ROM, DVD or through secure FTP. All files must be submitted in ASCII format. EBCDIC is no longer accepted. The specifications are available here.

Form RI-W3 must be filed on paper, not electronically. If Forms W-2 information is reported on a CD-ROM or DVD, include the paper Form RI-W3 with the CD-ROM or DVD for processing. If Forms W-2 information is submitted via secure FTP, paper Form RI W-3 must be submitted separately.?

Forms 1099 are not required to be submitted unless there is Rhode Island withholding reflected on the form (differing from the federal requirement that Forms 1099-MISC with nonemployee compensation shown in Box 7 be filed by January 31). Forms 1099 must be submitted to the Division on paper on or before the applicable federal deadline for that form. Electronic filing is not available. Go here for more information.

For more information on Rhode Island withholding tax, see the Division's website.

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