California Form DE 6, the old Quarterly Wage and Withholding Report, no longer exists as a standalone filing. The Employment Development Department replaced it with two forms that work together — the DE 9 (Quarterly Contribution Return and Report of Wages) and the DE 9C (Quarterly Contribution Return and Report of Wages, Continuation) — and every employer must file them electronically through the e-Services for Business portal at edd.ca.gov.1Employment Development Department. Required Filings and Due Dates If you came here looking for the DE 6, what follows is how to handle the current version of the same job.
What Replaced the DE 6
The DE 9 is the summary return. It reconciles total wages paid and taxes owed for the quarter, including Unemployment Insurance, Employment Training Tax, State Disability Insurance, and Personal Income Tax withholding. The DE 9C is the employee-by-employee detail, listing each worker’s wages and PIT withheld. Together they capture the same employer totals and individual breakdowns the DE 6 once carried, built for electronic submission.1Employment Development Department. Required Filings and Due Dates
Who Has to File
Any business that pays more than $100 in total wages to one or more employees during a calendar quarter must register with the EDD and file quarterly wage reports. Household employers follow a different trigger: $750 in cash wages per quarter.2California Tax Service Center. If You Have People Working for You
Once you’re registered, you file every quarter, even quarters with no wages. A zero return is still a return. Skipping it invites penalties the same way a late filing does.
What to Have Ready Before You File
Pull these together before you log in:
- Your EDD employer account number, an eight-digit number formatted XXX-XXXX-X, which appears on prior DE 9 or DE 9C forms and on EDD correspondence.
- A valid Social Security Number for every employee on the DE 9C. The IRS prohibits accepting an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number in place of an SSN for employment.3Internal Revenue Service. Hiring Employees
- Each employee’s gross wages for the quarter (pay, commissions, bonuses before deductions), broken out by amounts subject to Unemployment Insurance and amounts subject to PIT withholding.
- Each employee’s PIT withheld across the three-month period.
- Your employer-side UI, ETT, and SDI contributions for the quarter, which belong on the DE 9.
Reconcile your payroll ledger against your deposit records before you start entering numbers. Mismatches between what you withheld and what you report are a reliable way to draw an EDD review.
Filing Through e-Services for Business
California requires all employers to file employment tax returns, wage reports, and payroll tax deposits electronically.4Employment Development Department. E-file and E-pay Mandate for Employers After logging into e-Services, choose the quarterly filing option and the correct quarter, then enter your DE 9 totals and your DE 9C employee records. The system validates account number and SSN formatting as you go. When you finalize the transmission, save the confirmation page. That confirmation number is your proof of timely filing if the EDD questions it later.
Uploading Wage Data in Bulk
If you have many employees, you don’t need to key in each record. The portal accepts bulk uploads in a specific CSV or fixed-width format, and most payroll packages (ADP, Paychex, QuickBooks, Gusto) can generate an EDD-compatible file. If a payroll provider files on your behalf, confirm the filing posted inside your own e-Services account. The legal responsibility stays with you as the employer regardless of who hits submit.
If You Genuinely Can’t File Electronically
You can request a waiver by submitting Form DE 1245W, the E-file and E-pay Mandate Waiver Request, by fax to 1-916-255-1181 or by mail to the Employment Development Department, Document and Information Management Center, PO Box 989779, West Sacramento, CA 95798-9779. An approved waiver lasts one year starting with the quarter the EDD received your request. It is not retroactive, the EDD will not remind you when it ends, and a denial is final with no appeal.4Employment Development Department. E-file and E-pay Mandate for Employers Filing on paper without an approved waiver carries a 15% penalty on contributions under Unemployment Insurance Code Section 1112(b).5California Legislative Information. California Code Unemployment Insurance Code – UIC 1112
2026 Quarterly Deadlines
Reports are due the first day of the month after the quarter closes, and become delinquent at the end of that month. When a delinquency date lands on a weekend or holiday, it rolls to the next business day.6Employment Development Department. Payroll Tax Calendar
- Q1 (January through March): due April 1, delinquent after April 30, 2026.
- Q2 (April through June): due July 1, delinquent after July 31, 2026.
- Q3 (July through September): due October 1, delinquent after November 2, 2026.
- Q4 (October through December): due January 1, 2027, delinquent after February 1, 2027.
The Q3 and Q4 shifts come from the usual October 31 and January 31 dates falling on weekends in 2026.6Employment Development Department. Payroll Tax Calendar
Penalties for Missing a Deadline
Late filing or underpayment triggers a 15% penalty on the late amount under Unemployment Insurance Code Section 1112(a), unless you can show good cause, and interest accrues on top.5California Legislative Information. California Code Unemployment Insurance Code – UIC 1112 The EDD applies the same 15% rate to underpayment, late payment, exceeding the quarterly PIT deposit threshold, and paper filing without an approved waiver.7Employment Development Department. Penalty Reference Chart
Good cause is narrow. Being busy or forgetting does not qualify. System failures, natural disasters, and circumstances genuinely outside your control are the sort of thing the EDD may consider. If you’ve already missed a deadline, file and pay as soon as you can, because interest keeps running until you do.
Your EDD Account Number Is Not Your Federal EIN
Your federal Employer Identification Number from the IRS is nine digits and belongs on federal filings like Form 941. Your California EDD employer account number is eight digits and belongs on DE 9 and DE 9C filings. Swapping them will cause the return to reject or post to the wrong account.
Keep Your Records for Four Years
Hold onto wage data, withholding calculations, filed returns, and deposit confirmations for at least four years.8California Taxes. Staying on Track, Keeping Good Business Records The four-year window matches federal recordkeeping too.9Internal Revenue Service. Employment Tax Recordkeeping If the EDD opens a review, organized records are what let you close it quickly. Rebuilding payroll data after the fact rarely ends well.
Where to Get Help From the EDD
For questions about quarterly filings, account numbers, or penalty notices, call the EDD’s Taxpayer Assistance Center at 1-888-745-3886, or write to the Employment Development Department, Taxpayer Assistance Center, PO Box 826880, Sacramento, CA 94280-0001.10Employment Development Department. Contact Payroll Taxes If you receive a notice of penalty or assessment, respond by the deadline on the notice. Ignoring it does not stop collection.