A QuickBooks Payroll Subscription makes processing W-2′s pretty much a piece of cake at year end; however, there are still some things that you need to do to properly prepare for W-2 processing.
It’s not too early to start thinking about year end payroll activities, below are some year-end payroll tips to help you out.
By December 1, 2010:
Ask employees to verify their name and SSN BEFORE you issue your W-2′s.- Remind employees that if there is a change in their filing status due to marriage, divorce or dependents (birth, adoption, child turning 21), they may want to file a new W-4 for 2010.
- When a name is changed, continue to use the old name until the employee presents you with an updated social security card or the SSA may not properly post the earnings. You’ll need to explain to employees that you cannot accept the new name until you actually see the card. You may even need to tell them that they need to submit SSA Form SS-5 with any required documentation.
- Make sure employee paycheck names/Social Security Numbers match their SS cards and W-4 data.
Matching names to Social Security Numbers is vital. If the name and SSN on the card do not match the ones that you submit to the Social Security Administration, it can be costly to the employee in misposted earnings – and to your company or your clients in the form of penalties. You are allowed to make a photocopy of an employees social security card after they are hired in order to keep that copy on file.
Ways to verify that names and numbers match:
- Submit a written list (up to 50) names and SSNs to your local Social Security Office. Some offices will even accept faxed lists.
- Online using Social Security Online Business Services Online. You’ll need to create an account, but once you have that account you can get immediate results for 10 names and numbers – or – you can do an electronic upload for up to 250,000 names and SSNs and get the results the next business day.
Additional Resources:
- Form W-4 for 2010 is available from http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4.pdf
- Form SS-5 from the Social Security Administration is available from http://www.ssa.gov/online/ss-5.pdf
- Information about the online Social Security Number Verification Services is available at http://www.ssa.gov/employer/ssnv.htm
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