A commission is directly tied to sales; bonus pay is not. While commission plans offer a variable income based on sales activity, bonus plans provide a set payment that reps can receive regardless of sales results (though there may still be a minimum level of sales required for the bonus).

Commission is taxed high because of the way your employer withholds taxes. If your commission is paid on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis, then you pay taxes at a supplement rate. IRS guidelines require employers to withhold a 25% rate on top of withholdings for Medicare and Social Security taxes.

For example, if your bonus or commission is included in your regular pay, then it's taxed ing to normal federal and state withholding. If you receive it outside your regular paycheck, then it becomes supplemental and your commission is taxed at a rate of 25%.

Why is the Sales Commission Taxed like this? Since sales commission is a supplemental wage, the IRS taxes it on top of your regular earnings. Your employer also withholds Eliminate taxes for Social Security and Medicare, just like any other form of income.

Is My Sales Commission Taxed? The short answer to this question is “Yes.” The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers a commission a supplemental wage—an income payment received by an employee in addition to regular earnings. Examples of supplemental wages include bonuses, commissions, awards, and prizes.

Optional Charges An optional payment designated as a tip, gratuity, or service charge is not subject to tax. A mandatory payment designated as a tip, gratuity, or service charge is included in taxable gross receipts, even if the amount is later paid by the retailer to employees.

A bonus is always a welcome bump in pay, but it's taxed differently from regular income. Instead of adding it to your ordinary income and taxing it at your top marginal tax rate, the IRS considers bonuses to be “supplemental wages” and levies a flat 22 percent federal withholding rate.