Are gratuities routine in your industry? If you own a business in which your employees are tipped for providing customers with food and beverages, we have good news. You may qualify for a federal tax credit involving the Social Security and Medicare (FICA) taxes that you pay on your employees’ tip income. Keep reading to learn about this tip tax credit and how to claim it, should you choose to do so.

The FICA credit applies to tips that your staff members receive from customers when they buy food and beverages. It doesn’t matter if the food and beverages are consumed on or off the premises. Although tips are paid by customers, for FICA purposes, they’re treated as if you paid them to your employees.

As you know, your employees are required to report their tips to you. You must:

• Withhold and remit the employee’s share of FICA taxes, and
• Pay the employer’s share of those taxes.

You claim the credit as part of the general business credit. It’s equal to the employer’s share of FICA taxes paid on tip income in excess of what’s needed to bring your employee’s wages up to $5.15 per hour. In other words, no credit is available to the extent the tip income just brings the employee up to the $5.15-per-hour level, calculated monthly. If you pay each employee at least $5.15 an hour (excluding tips), you don’t have to be concerned with this calculation.

Note: A 2007 tax law froze the per-hour amount at $5.15, which was the amount of the federal minimum wage at that time. The minimum wage is now $7.25 per hour but the amount for credit computation purposes remains $5.15.

Hypothetically, let’s say a server works at your restaurant and is paid $2.13 an hour plus tips. During the month, she works 160 hours for $340.80 and receives $2,000 in cash tips, which she reports to you.

The server’s $2.13-an-hour rate is below the $5.15 rate by $3.02 per hour. Thus, for the 160 hours worked, she is below the $5.15 rate by $483.20 (160 times $3.02). For the server, therefore, the first $483.20 of tip income just brings her up to the minimum rate. The rest of the tip income is $1,516.80 ($2,000 minus $483.20). As the server’s employer, you pay FICA taxes at the rate of 7.65 percent for her. Therefore, your employer credit is $116.03 for the month: $1,516.80 times 7.65 percent.

While the employer’s share of FICA taxes is generally deductible, the FICA taxes paid with respect to tip income used to determine the credit can’t be deducted, because that would amount to a double benefit. However, you can elect to not take the credit, in which case you can claim the deduction.

If your business pays FICA taxes on tip income paid to your employees, this tip tax credit may be valuable to you. Other rules may apply. The tax professionals at Ramsay & Associates can help determine the best course of action for your business. Contact us with questions.