Understanding payroll taxes starts with separating what you actually pay as an employer from what you withhold from employees and send to the government on their behalf. Both are your responsibility to handle, but only the employer taxes come out of your pocket.

Employer-paid taxes include your share of FICA and unemployment insurance. FICA covers Social Security at 6.2% and Medicare at 1.45%, totaling 7.65% of each employee’s wages. Employees pay the same amount through withholding, so 15.3% total goes to FICA on every paycheck. The Social Security portion has a wage base limit that adjusts each year, currently around $168,600. Medicare has no cap.

Federal unemployment tax runs 6.0% on the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages. However, you get a credit of up to 5.4% when you pay Michigan unemployment insurance on time. That brings your effective FUTA rate down to 0.6% for most employers.

Michigan unemployment insurance varies based on your experience rating. New employers typically start around 2.7%, though this can be higher or lower depending on your industry classification. The rate adjusts over time based on your layoff history. If you’ve had employees file unemployment claims, your rate goes up. A stable workforce with few claims brings it down. The taxable wage base in Michigan is $9,500 per employee.

Beyond what you pay directly, you’re responsible for withholding federal income tax based on each employee’s W-4 form. Payroll processing software calculates this automatically based on the employee’s filing status and allowances.

Michigan state income tax is a flat 4.25% on wages. Unlike some states with complex brackets, Michigan’s flat rate makes withholding calculations straightforward. If your employees work in Detroit or certain other Michigan cities with local income taxes, you’ll need to withhold those as well. Detroit’s rate is 2.4% for residents and 1.2% for non-residents who work in the city.

The timing of payments matters. Federal payroll taxes get deposited either monthly or semi-weekly depending on your total tax liability. Miss a deposit deadline and penalties add up fast. Michigan unemployment is typically paid quarterly, with quarterly wage reports due at the same time.

Most small business owners don’t realize how much payroll taxes add to their labor costs. That 7.65% employer portion of FICA plus unemployment insurance means an employee earning $50,000 costs you roughly $4,300 in employer taxes before you count benefits or workers’ comp. Factor this into your hiring decisions and pricing.

Record keeping requirements are strict. Keep payroll records for at least four years in case of an audit from the IRS or Michigan unemployment agency. This includes time records, pay rates, tax deposits, and W-4 forms.

If you’re a Detroit medical billing service or any other small business in Macomb County handling payroll internally, make sure your system handles these calculations and filings automatically. Manual payroll increases error risk and makes it easy to miss deadlines. Getting payroll taxes wrong creates problems that compound over time and get expensive to fix.