What is my “experience rate”? I am a household employer in New York State.

[phillipsville]

As a household employer in NYS, I am trying to calculate my FUTA tax.  Turbo Tax asks me for my "experience rate".  I called the NYS department of labor to ask them.  They said, "I don't know what turbotax means by experience rate.  Your contribution rate is .9"  

What does TurboTax mean by "experience rate"?  Do you know what the "experience rate" is for NYS?

Thank you for your time and help,

Miranda

[Cindy0H]

This is complicated. The best I can find is:

The New Employer normal contribution rate for 2019 is 2.5%. I know this doesn't say "experience rate", but it looks like that is something earned over time.

Experience rating is the method by which employer contribution payments under the state unemployment compensation laws may be varied on the basis of each individual employer's experience with unemployment.

The New York document:

https://labor.ny.gov/formsdocs/ui/IA318.12.pdf

[YTM Notary]

I think this question relates to a time period on schedule H.  I tried to enter numbers in percentages,  in the worksheet, but it is telling me that I must enter the information in the date format:  mm/dd/yyyy.  

Anyone else see that?

[DianeW777]

FUTA tax rate: The FUTA tax rate is 6.0%. The tax applies to the first $7,000 you paid to each employee as wages during the year. The $7,000 is often referred to as the federal or FUTA wage base. Your state wage base may be different based on the respective state’s rules.   However, you may be able to take a credit of up to 5.4% against the FUTA tax, resulting in a net tax rate of 0.6%. [This is dependent on you paying your employer state unemployment tax (SUTA)].

• Household Employees: Figure the FUTA tax on the FUTA wages you pay. If you pay cash wages to all your household employees totaling $1,000 or more in any calendar quarter of 2020 or 2021, the first $7,000 of cash wages you pay to each household employee in 2021 is FUTA wages.

SUTA Tax Rate: Each state has their own employer unemployment tax rate (SUTA) as well. If you meet the criteria for paying the employer unemployment tax for a household employee then the federal rate is dependent on the fact that the employer's state unemployment tax has or will be paid as well.

• New York New Employer Experience Rate
  • If you pay cash wages totaling $500 or more in a calendar quarter to one or more persons employed as a household employee in your home, you are required to pay New York State unemployment insurance taxes. See NY Publication 27.