Is an owner that takes a paycheck counted as employee on form 941?

Yes, Laurie. It is possible as long as the owner was set up as an employee and paychecks were issued accordingly. 

It’s important to note that Line 1 of Form 941 includes a count of employees who received pay during a pay period that included the dates March 12 (for Q1), June 12 (for Q2), September 12 (for Q3), or December 12 (for Q4).

To confirm, review the paychecks issued during the third month of each quarter and check the corresponding pay periods to ensure compliance. Please see the virtual reference below:

To learn more about the other boxes of the 941 form, please check out this article: How QuickBooks populates the 941.

Let us know if you have questions.

@laurie-stampin 

What type of business entity is this?  If this is a sole proprietorship, the owner is not considered an employee and should not be taking a paycheck.  SPs pay themselves via owner's draws.  If this is an S-Corp and he provides services to the business, then yes, he should be counted as an employee on Line 1.