Vision Payroll

This week’s question comes from Sandy, an HR manager. We’ve just had our first employee sign up to receive the COBRA premium subsidy. What information do we need to keep to document the COBRA credit? Answer: Employers reimbursing employees for 65% of the eligible COBRA continuation premium must maintain specific documentation. This information is not to be submitted with the Form 941, Employer’s QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return, but must be maintained and presumably presented to the Internal Revenue Service or Department of Labor upon request. The required information is:

1. Information on the receipt, including dates and amounts, of the assistance eligible individuals’ 35% share of the premium.
2. In the case of an insured plan, copy of invoice or other supporting statement from the insurance carrier and proof of timely payment of the full premium to the insurance carrier required under COBRA.
3. In the case of a self-insured plan, proof of the premium amount and proof of the coverage provided to the assistance eligible individuals.
4. Attestation of involuntary termination, including the date of the involuntary termination (which must be during the period from September 1, 2008, to December 31, 2009), for each covered employee whose involuntary termination is the basis for eligibility for the subsidy.
5. Proof of each assistance eligible individual’s eligibility for COBRA coverage at any time during the period from Sept. 1, 2008, to Dec. 31, 2009, and election of COBRA coverage.
6. A record of the social security numbers of all covered employees, the amount of the subsidy reimbursed with respect to each covered employee, and whether the subsidy was for one individual or two or more individuals.
7. Other documents necessary to verify the correct amount of reimbursement.

Earlier posts have discussed the COBRA premium subsidy in further detail. Click the COBRA tag for more information or contact Vision Payroll.

This week’s question comes from John, an HR Director. We need to send COBRA notices to terminated employees. Are model notices available for the COBRA premium reduction? Answer: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) made changes to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) continuation health coverage. In certain situations, employers must pay 65% of the continuation premium and take a credit on Form 941, Employer’s QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return. The US Department of Labor recently announced the availability of model notices for use in four different situations.

The first notice is the General Notice (full version). Plans subject to the Federal COBRA provisions must send the General Notice to all qualified beneficiaries, not just covered employees, who experienced a qualifying event at any time from September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009, regardless of the type of qualifying event, AND who either have not yet been provided an election notice or who were provided an election notice on or after February 17, 2009 that did not include the additional information required by ARRA. This full version includes information on the premium reduction as well as information required in a COBRA election notice.

The second notice is the General Notice (abbreviated version). The abbreviated version of the General Notice includes the same information as the full version regarding the availability of the premium reduction and other rights under ARRA, but does not include the COBRA coverage election information. It may be sent in lieu of the full version to individuals who experienced a qualifying event during on or after September 1, 2008, have already elected COBRA coverage, and still have it.

The third notice is the Alternative Notice. Insurance issuers that provide group health insurance coverage must send the Alternative Notice to persons who became eligible for continuation coverage under a State law. Continuation coverage requirements vary among States, and issuers should modify this model notice as necessary to conform it to the applicable State law. Issuers may also find the model Alternative Notice or the abbreviated model General Notice appropriate for use in certain situations.

The final notice is the Notice in Connection with Extended Election Periods. Plans subject to the Federal COBRA provisions must send the Notice in Connection with Extended Election Periods to any assistance eligible individual (or any individual who would be an assistance eligible individual if a COBRA continuation election were in effect) who:

1. Had a qualifying event at any time from September 1, 2008 through February 16, 2009; and
2. Either did not elect COBRA continuation coverage, or who elected it but subsequently discontinued COBRA.

This notice includes information on ARRA’s additional election opportunity, as well as premium reduction information. This notice must be provided by April 18, 2009.

Contact Vision Payroll if you have any questions on the COBRA model notices.

This week’s question comes from Jerri, an HR director. I know federal income tax withholding is supposed to change because of the new tax law. Do employees need to file a new Form W-4? Answer: Employees are not required to file a revised Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate or its Spanish equivalent, Formulario W-4(SP), Certificado de Exención de la Retención del Empleado to see the impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) provided new tax tables in Publication 15-T that adjust withholding for most workers. Employers must begin using the tables no later than April 1, 2009.

Workers may file a new Form W-4 or Formulario W-4(SP) if they do not wish to have their withholding reduced. Employees may wish to review Publication 919, How Do I Adjust My Tax Withholding or use the IRS withholding calculator. The IRS also recommends that employers provide a copy of the notice on page 73 of Publication 15-T to employees to help them understand the changes.

Contact Vision Payroll if you have further questions on the impact of ARRA on federal income tax withholding.

This week’s question comes from Greg, a plant manager. We have a third shift that works from 11 pm to 7 am the following day. Some of the workers will work this Saturday night into Sunday. Do we need to pay for eight hours of work on the third shift Saturday night? Answer: Since Daylight Saving Time begins in most parts of the country at 2 am, Sunday, March 8, 2009 many workers on a third shift will only work seven hours. At 2 am on that day, clocks are turned ahead to 3 am. The Fair Labor Standards Act does not require employers to pay employees for the hour not worked. Contact Vision Payroll if you have any further questions on the switch to Daylight Saving Time.

This week’s question comes from Doug, head of HR. I heard that the new tax law will impact employees eligible for COBRA. How does the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the Act) change COBRA continuation health coverage? Answer: Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, commonly known as COBRA, certain former employees are allowed to continue health care coverage under their former’s employer’s group plan. The former employees must pay the cost of the health care premiums.

The Act made significant changes to COBRA continuation coverage. Under the Act, certain covered employees are required to pay only thirty-five percent of the premiums and their former employers must pay the remaining sixty-five percent. Employers may claim a credit on Form 941, Employer’s QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return, for the premiums paid for eligible employees.

The Internal Revenue Service recently released an updated Form 941 to reflect this law change and will soon release other updated forms, such as Form 941-X Adjusted Employer’s QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund.

Over the next several days, Vision Payroll will be posting additional articles on implementing the changes to COBRA continuation coverage required by the Act as well as other changes to payroll and HR by other sections of the Act. We’re also planning a seminar on implementing these changes, so contact Vision Payroll if you’d like to attend.

This week’s question comes from Angela, a part-time employee. I only work a few hours each month to help with school expenses. I claimed exemption from withholding when I started work last year. Yesterday’s check had federal withholding for the first time. Why did federal income tax withholding start on my wages? Answer: Employees who have provided a Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, claiming exemption from federal income tax withholding needed to file a new 2009 Form W-4 by February 16, 2009 in order to continue their exemption from federal income tax withholding. Any employee who did not provide a 2009 Form W-4 claiming exemption before last Monday must have tax withheld based on a previously filed Form W-4 not claiming exemption, if available, or using single, zero allowances, if not. File a new Form W-4 or Formulario W-4(SP), Certificado de Exención de la Retención del Empleado to claim exemption from withholding or to correct the number of withholding allowances claimed. Employers may not refund any federal income tax withheld unless the over-withheld tax was due to a calculation error. Tax properly withheld from an employee who failed to file an updated Form W-4 is not considered tax withheld due to a calculation error. Employers should update the allowances claimed by logging in to their company file or providing Vision Payroll with the updated information.

This week’s question comes from Kelly, a business owner. I already gave my employees their W-2s. Do I still need to file Form W-3? Answer: Anyone required to provide a Form W-2 to an employee must file Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements. Employers may file Form W-3 on paper if transmitting fewer than 250 Forms W-2. Transmit Copy A of Form W-2 with Form W-3 to the Social Security Administration (SSA). Employers transmitting 250 or more Forms W-2 must file them electronically. All employers are encouraged by the SSA to file electronically, even if not otherwise required, to reduce costs and increase accuracy. Vision Payroll files Forms W-3 for all clients electronically with the SSA.

This week’s question comes from Carolyn, a business owner. I read recently about statutory employees and would like to find out if some of our new hires would qualify as statutory employees. Can you tell me more about statutory employees? Answer: Common law considers some workers employees and some independent contractors. By statute, some independent contractors are treated as employees for employment tax purposes.

There are four categories of independent contractors that might be statutory employees:

1. A driver who distributes beverages (other than milk) or meat, vegetable, fruit, or bakery products; or who picks up and delivers laundry or dry cleaning, if the driver is your agent or is paid on commission.
2. A full-time life insurance sales agent whose principal business activity is selling life insurance or annuity contracts, or both, primarily for one life insurance company.
3. An individual who works at home on materials or goods that you supply and that must be returned to you or to a person you name, if you also furnish specifications for the work to be done.
4. A full-time traveling or city salesperson who works on your behalf and turns in orders to you from wholesalers, retailers, contractors, or operators of hotels, restaurants, or other similar establishments. The goods sold must be merchandise for resale or supplies for use in the buyer’s business operation. The work performed for you must be the salesperson’s principal business activity.

If the independent contractor must perform the services personally as an explicit or implicit clause of the service contract, if the independent contractor does not have a substantial investment in the non-transportation facilities property and equipment, and the services are performed for the same payer on a continuing basis, then the payer must withhold social security and Medicare tax from payments to contractors.

For workers in categories 1 and 4 above who have payments subject to social security and Medicare tax under these rules, the payments are also considered wages for federal unemployment (FUTA) purposes. Payments to workers in categories 2 and 3 above are never considered wages for FUTA purposes.

Payments to statutory employees are never subject to federal income tax withholding.

Report payments to statutory employees on Form W-2, box 1, box 3 (to the wage limit), and box 5. Be sure to check the box 13 “Statutory employee” checkbox on the Form W-2. Statutory employees report the amount from Form W-2, box 1 on Form 1040, Schedule C, line 1 and complete the checkbox on that line. They may also deduct related business expenses on Schedule C, to the extent allowable by law.

Contact Vision Payroll if you have any questions on statutory employees.

This week’s question comes from Rachel, a business owner. I have been running payroll with almost the exact same hours every week for the last few months. In the last few weeks, the payroll cost was several thousand dollars more each week than a month ago. Why did my payroll cost increase? Answer: There are at least three employer taxes with wage caps that are often fully paid by the end of the calendar year for some or all employees. They are the social security portion of FICA or OASDI tax, federal unemployment tax (FUTA), and state unemployment tax (SUTA). Social security had a wage limit of $102,000 ($106,800 in 2009), FUTA has a $7,000 limit in each year, and the SUTA limit varies by state from a low of $7,000 to more than $35,000. At the start of a new calendar year those taxes must again be paid by the employer. With a combined tax rate of over 7% at a minimum, a $100,000 weekly payroll could easily have an increase of between $5,000 and $10,000 in employer payroll tax liability at the start of a new calendar year. Vision Payroll can work with you to find ways to legally minimize your employer tax liability. Contact Vision Payroll today for more information.

This week’s question comes from Greg, a part-time accounts payable clerk. I made almost the same amount of money in 2008 as I did in 2007, but the amount of my federal income tax (FIT) withheld is significantly lower. Why did my FIT withheld go down? There are several reasons why your FIT withheld could be significantly lower, even though your income was almost the same.

1. Inflation creep. Each year, as inflation reduces the value of the dollar, tax tables in Publication 15 (Circular E) are adjusted so that less tax would be withheld on the same amount of income. This is to adjust for the reduced buying power of the same dollar amount of income.
2. Reduced income. At certain low-income levels, no tax is withheld if the withholding allowances claimed are greater than zero. Even FIT withholding of a few dollars each week can add up to a few hundred-dollar difference at year-end compared to no withholding at certain low-income levels.
3. Increased withholding allowances. Many employees file a revised Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate or Formulario W-4(SP), Certificado de Exención de la Retención del Empleado. If the number of withholding allowances claimed increases, the amount of FIT withheld will decrease. Instead of receiving a big refund when a Form 1040 is filed, the employee receives a small net pay increase each week. Some employees also file Form W-4 claiming exemption from all FIT withholding.
4. Claiming Earned Income Credit. Many employees file a new or revised Form W-5, Earned Income Credit Advance Payment Certificate. As in the case of increased withholding allowances, claiming an advance EIC payment will increase net pay received each week, but could reduce the amount of FIT withheld.
5. Increase in pre-tax deductions. Employees who increase the amount of a §125 election or elect to contribute more money to a pre-tax retirement plan such as a SIMPLE plan or §401(k) plan, could have a significantly reduced amount of FIT withheld on the same amount of gross pay. Since those amounts are deducted before FIT withholding is calculated, the FIT deduction should be reduced.

Employees should work with their CPA to project their FIT liability for the current year then assess their progress toward meeting that liability each quarter. If the projected FIT withholding be less than the annualized projected liability a revised Form W-4 or Form W-5 should be filed or the need to pay quarterly estimated tax payments using Form 1040-ES should be considered. Employers should update the allowances claimed by logging in to their company file or providing Vision Payroll with the updated information.