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IRS notice decoder · Business accounts and employer notices

CP136B: your payroll tax deposit schedule for next year

A CP136B tells an employer that switches to Form 941 whether to deposit payroll taxes monthly or semiweekly next year, based on last year's Form 944.

By the Carry Forward Learning team Reviewed by Hunter Nottingham, JD, CPA

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CheckedOct 19, 2026

What a CP136B means

A CP136B tells an employer that its federal tax deposit schedule for next year's Forms 941 may differ from last year's. The IRS bases it on the total tax reported on the employer's Form 944 for last year. source 1

There are two schedules. Monthly depositors deposit the tax on a month's wages by a set day of the next month; semiweekly depositors deposit within days of each payday, on the pattern the IRS page sets out. Which one applies depends on the total tax in the lookback period. source 1

It's informational. We'd check the tax figure it used against your records, because a wrong schedule is a common source of deposit penalties.

The date that counts

Nothing to send back. Use the schedule the notice gives for deposits from the start of next year, and file last year's Form 944 as soon as possible if the notice shows no tax. source 1

Why people get one

  • The IRS figured your deposit schedule for next year from the tax on last year's original Form 944. source 1
  • If the tax shown is zero, the IRS says it has no record of last year's Form 944 and asks you to file it. source 1

First steps

  1. Compare the tax figure on the notice with your original Form 944 for last year; the IRS says not to include amended returns. source 1
  2. Note whether you'll be a monthly or semiweekly depositor and set payroll reminders to match. source 1
  3. When you file Form 941, report liabilities, not deposits: on Part 2 for monthly depositors or on Schedule B (Form 941) for semiweekly depositors. source 1
  4. Make deposits electronically unless one of the exceptions on the IRS page applies. source 1

What not to do

  • Don't keep last year's habits by default. A change of schedule is the point of the notice.
  • Don't list deposits on the liability schedule; the IRS says to show only the tax liabilities. source 1
  • Don't pay through a link or phone number in an unexpected email or text. Use irs.gov, typed in yourself.
  • Related CP207 When the liability schedule on a return is missing or wrong.
  • Related CP276B A warning about late or short deposits.

Keep reading

Questions

Do I have to show my payments on Form 941?

No. The IRS says it has a record of your payments; show only the tax liabilities. source 1

What if the tax on the notice looks wrong?

The figure includes only the tax on your original Form 944 for last year, the IRS says, not amended returns. Base your schedule on that original figure. source 1

What if my tax builds up fast within a month?

The IRS page explains a next-day deposit rule for large accumulated liabilities, after which you become a semiweekly depositor. source 1

Sources

  1. IRS, Understanding your CP136B notice (external site) checked Oct 19, 2026

Every rule on this page comes from the IRS page in the list, read on the date shown. Your notice itself is the final word on its own dates and amounts.