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From various due dates to tax forms to simply making sure everyone at your organization gets their checks on time, year-end payroll responsibilities have the potential to create a lot of chaos. That’s why staying on top of everything is so critical. Take some time to create a checklist or other way to keep everything organized and start 2020 on the right foot. 

Confirm All Employee Info

You probably keep accurate records on all of your employee information, but before the holidays hit, you should make a list and check it twice. Start by verifying that all of the information your employee’s need to get paid is up-to-date. Names, Social Security numbers, addresses should all be confirmed. This is especially important because the IRS can impose penalties for missing or incorrect information like this. 

This step also includes making sure various financial information on employee W-2s is current. Withholdings, retirement plans, and other variables can change from time to time. Make sure they’re reflected on the W-2 forms. Finally ensure all terminated and deceased employees are coded correctly.

Wages, Taxes, and Benefits

Personal info aside, the next important task is ensuring all wages, taxes, and benefits are correct and properly documented. A common missed step pertains to those special tax items that may not be in the forefront on a daily or weekly basis. Data such as other forms of compensation, reimbursements, tips, any taxable fringe benefits, and/or dependent benefits are all important to verify.

Other benefits you need to account for include any education benefits your company might pay for, company vehicle use or provided transportation, moving or relocation expenses,  

Other Year-End Payroll Tasks

Rounding out the year-end payroll tasks you should be tackling are those special considerations that are easy to forget about. Special circumstances like bonuses or unscheduled payments are often easy to omit, as are any checks or payments you may have needed to void or reverse. 

Finally, round out your year-end payroll processes by preparing for next year. Make sure all of the tasks we’ve covered are ready to go in the new year. Additionally, reach out to your employees to fill out new W-4s if they need to update any information. 

Attend the Next CTR isolved Webinar for More Year-End Payroll Info

Year-End payroll tasks and process can feel like a lot to handle. CTR and isolved are here to help. Join us for our Year-End Payroll Webinar on November 14th to learn the ins and outs of handling year-end like a pro.