Probationary Status for Missouri Unemployment Tax

Background

Employers who pay employees in Missouri are required to report any employees who are in a probationary period on their quarterly unemployment filings. See the Missouri Contribution and Wage Report.

Quoting from the Missouri Department of Labor Website, “An individual hired on a trial basis to fill a regular job should be reported as a probationary worker if such worker’s period of employment did not exceed 28 consecutive days. The letter “P” and the beginning and ending dates of employment should be entered on the line the worker’s name and wage amount are shown on the quarterly contribution and wage report. The wages should be included in total and taxable wages.

No charges will be made to a contributing employer’s account for any benefit payments that are attributable to such wages. Reimbursable employers shall be liable for all benefit payments.”

If you are a Full-Service Payroll customer, when we complete your quarterly Missouri SUTA tax filings, you will need to indicate if an employee is in a 28-day probationary period.

How to indicate the probationary period in Patriot Software

Payroll > Employees > Employee List > Click the Employee Name > Personal Info > Edit
At the bottom of the page, under the “Additional Information Required for Missouri Tax Filings,” choose “This employee IS under probation.”
Click “Save Employee.”