Payroll

Feeling haunted: Don’t be scared by year-end Payroll

10/31/2012

Who needs Halloween when year-end seems to come up like a witch riding on a broomstick—all at once. Take a few minutes to stir things up now and your Payroll cauldron won’t bubble over in December.

Safe harbor protects employers from free-rider penalties

10/30/2012

Under the health care reform law, employers of 50 or more full-time employees during the preceding year will pay free-rider penalties if they don’t offer full-time employees (i.e., those who work at least 30 hours a week) affordable health benefits. How you determine full-time status is the subject of new IRS guidance.

Fall back: Standard time starts Nov. 4

10/29/2012

Don’t forget to turn your clocks back one hour, to standard time, at 2 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 4. Employees working the graveyard shift will actually work nine hours and will need to be paid for nine hours’ work.

What are the rules on timely pay?

10/27/2012

Q. Is it true that according to federal law, employees must be paid within two weeks of completing their work, no matter the excuse (computer glitch, etc.)?

Severance pay: Is it FICA taxable or not?

10/26/2012

A federal appeals court has ruled that a bankrupt company’s severance payments qualified as FICA-free supplemental unemployment benefits—also known as SUB pay. Therefore, the court concluded, the company’s $1 million FICA refund claim was proper.

1099 this! And this! And this, too!

10/22/2012

The W-2 year-end process is burdensome enough. The last thing you need to worry about is back-up withholding from payments made to independent contractors and filing Form 1099-MISC. Here’s what you need to know for the 2012 filing season.

FICA wage base increases to $113,700 for 2013

10/16/2012

The Social Security Administration has announced that the 2013 taxable wage base for the Social Security portion of FICA increases to $113,700. That’s a 3.2% hike over the 2012 wage base of $110,100.

State chart: withholding on supplemental pay

10/08/2012

STATE WITHHOLDING RATES: Here’s a chart summarizing how states handle income tax withholding on supplemental wages. Note: To get the full story on state tax rates, visit your state tax department’s website.

Timekeeping records: Know the rules for exempt & nonexempt staff

10/08/2012

Employers with casual timekeeping systems are much more likely to face lawsuits over unpaid wages than organizations with strict record-keeping rules. Some simple procedural guidance can help keep you out of court. Here’s how the record-keeping requirements for exempt employees differ from those for nonexempt workers.

IRS nixes reimbursement plans as wage recharacterizations

10/07/2012

It would be great if you could wave a magic wand and convert some of employees’ taxable wages into nontaxable business reimbursements. But you can’t. A new revenue ruling reiterates that employees’ expenses must have a business connection before you can reimburse them tax-free.