Washinton State Unemployment Insurance Tax (SUI)

As an employer in Washington state, you are most likely required to pay state unemployment taxes, administered by the Employee Security Department (ESD). Unlike the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA), where you pay unemployment taxes for employees who earn more than $1,500, in Washington, you need to pay state unemployment taxes for an employee regardless of their wages.

SUI Tax Rate

The Washington state unemployment insurance (SUI) tax rate varies from company to company and from year to year. It is generally based on how much has been collected in unemployment benefits from your former workers and how many employees you have on your payroll. Two factors go into assigning you a tax rate:

1. Experience rating tax: Based on the average number of workers at your company who collected unemployment over the past 4 fiscal years

2. Shared Cost (Social) Tax: Based on benefits that were paid out last year that don't relate to a specific employer
   

The ESD will typically send out a tax rate notice in December to let you know your tax rate for the following calendar year. In 2024, the average SUI tax rate was 1.35%. Employers must pay SUI taxes on the first $68,500 of each employee’s wages, in addition to FUTA taxes, where you pay on the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages.

Deadline to File

Unemployment tax payments and reports are due every quarter by the last day of the month following the last day of each quarter.

If the due date falls on a weekend or holiday, your payment can be postmarked by the following business day.

Filing and Paying Quarterly SUI Tax

You can file online through the ESD portal, Employer Account Management Services (EAMS), your SecureAccess Washington (SAW) account, or by mailing one of their original forms. Paper forms must be obtained through the ESD and cannot be copied due to a unique link used to scan information into their computers. You can request a form by emailing OlympiaAMC@esd.wa.gov or calling 855-TAX-WAGE (use option 4 for paper forms).

To pay online, you may choose to use EAMS or the ESD ePay portal. You can also pay by mail by requesting a payment voucher from the ESD.

Employment Security Number

Your ES Number, commonly referred to as a SUI number, is a 12-digit number used to file your quarterly unemployment taxes. This is not to be confused with your Unified Business Identifier (UBI) number, which is a 9-digit number that begins with 600, 601, or 602.

You can find your ES (SUI) Number printed on the top right corner of your annual tax-rate notice, on your SAW account, or by calling the Employment Security Department at (855) 829-9243.

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Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as legal, business, or tax advice. Please consult with your accountant or bookkeeper for more information based on your specific situation. For more information, check out the following resources:

• Unemployment Taxes

• Employer Taxes Rates

• Determine Your Tax Rates