Remote working comes with a whole new set of management challenges. Click through for some easy and inexpensive ways on handling requirements for poster compliance for your remote employees.
Continue reading
When you own or run a business, some of the most time-consuming tasks are its payroll and human resources management, or HR. There are endless deadlines and paperwork, all of which has to be absolutely accurate. And yet, even with accounting or payroll software, the work is tedious and never-ending. But take heart, there is a solution to free yourself from this burden: outsourcing your payroll services.
There are a number of reasons why you should considering outsourcing your payroll services:
A reputable payroll solutions provider frees up the time and resources you are currently spend on processing payroll so you can concentrate on revenue-generating activities. Incorporation of time-consuming HR administrative duties like the processing of new hires or benefits administration can also be handled by your chosen resource.
Assigning the detail-oriented tasks of calculating payroll payments and deductions; tax payments and returns; and printing, signing and distributing paychecks to a professional firm ensures that your payroll processes will be done correctly. You can mitigate the occurrence of payroll errors with an experienced payroll service.
Each employee’s paycheck differs due to their salary rate, tax withholding, and deductions, including retirement savings account contributions; child or spouse support payments; heath care; and vacation accruals. Calculating these takes time, but is a process that is easily outsourced.
How you currently distribute paychecks can vary; you may have employees receiving checks in methods such as direct deposit, mailed checks or hand-delivered. In all cases, paycheck stubs must be delivered to each employee. Your payroll service can coordinate paycheck printing, signing and delivery on your behalf.
You receive reports summarizing your accounting activities on a scheduled basis, making end-of-year reconciliation and next-year planning easier.
Business owners are required to file quarterly tax reports that must calculate the correct amount of taxes withdrawn and due, along with a year-end tax statement to calculate any taxes still owed. Your payroll service will prepare the documentation and perform the on-time filing required for your yearly tax payments and returns.
Government tax regulations can change, and without in-depth knowledge of taxes, business owners can miss important updates. Yet they are legally obligated to conform to those regulations.
Failure to administrate your payroll processes accurately can result in sizeable fines and penalties when taxes are not calculated correctly.
Knowing that your payroll is handled correctly and accurately puts your mind at ease if and when your business is audited. In 2019, the IRS closed more than 1.9 million cases of underreported taxes, resulting in almost $6.7 billion in additional assessments. The best way to pass an audit is to keep impeccable records.
For payroll and tax-filing services you can trust, outsource your payroll responsibilities to Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services. We provide a number of standard payroll features including direct deposit, and electronic tax filing; payroll services including quality reporting and cost-effective payroll management; and tax filing services for all federal, state and local filings.
As a full-service business solution, we also provide much more than just payroll services. Ask about our multi-services discount and visit our website to learn about benefits administration, retirement plans, HR services, and more. Contact us at 703-370-2226 for a quote.
If you have a small to medium-sized business, you may worry that you aren’t large enough to offer a retirement plan to your employees. We’re here to say that you can. With Benefit Provider’s Multiple Employer 401(k) (MEP) Plan, companies of any size can provide this benefit and offer their employees the protection and costs of a bigger plan.
A Multiple Employer Plan (MEP) is a retirement savings plan that joins two or more unrelated employers together that don’t have the resources individually, to enable them to offer their employees a tax-advantaged retirement savings plan. Each individual company’s plans are separate and individual.
A MEP run by an entity known as the MEP sponsor, which is responsible for administrative duties for the plan. Through the MEP, Benefit Providers can minimize the tax implications of providing their employees with certain types of benefits. Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services is the trustee of the MEP, and carries the responsibility of managing the plan, with an independent third party fiduciary to provide extra security.
We only charge a low $890 annual administration fee (plus a one-time $600 setup fee), and with that, you receive all the benefits of a 401(k) plan. Plus, if you use our ECCA Payroll Services or any other services provided by Benefit Providers , you also receive a 10% multi-services discount, making the annual administration fee $800!
Another benefit of the MEP is that it must be audited every year, which keeps your accounting accurate. Your MEP administrator/sponsor, like Benefit Providers, takes on the responsibility of doing it right, thus taking that burden off your shoulders.
Take advantage of the IRS tax credit that can offset 50% of the total your cost of your MEP (using a 3-year average), up to a maximum of $500 each year for 3 years. This applies to most plans as a tax credit for some of the ordinary and necessary costs of starting a qualified plan. Contact Benefit Providers at 703-370-2226 or info@benefitproviders.com to see how you can qualify for this tax credit.
The Benefit Providers’ 401(k) plan is online, offering your employees 24/7 access to their accounts. In addition, we provide knowledgeable customer service specialists who can provide quick answers if you need assistance.
Each company’s plan within the MEP can have its own customized options available, and everyone can have their plan based on their needs. It is not one-size-fits-all. Using QuickBooks, we can integrate your plan into your existing payroll services or software.
While the MEP is designed for small 401(k) plans, Benefit Provider has solutions for the medium-asset-sized plans as well. Look for new benefits in 2021!
Since 1998, Benefit Providers has been providing benefit administration and benefit services. “I work with the business owner to create a retirement plan with the best terms,” said Joel Bernstein, CEO of Payroll Benefits/ECCA Payroll Services. “Most employers we speak with are unaware of what options are available to them, and how these options can change over time. We can determine whether it is worth it for the employer to have a 401(k) plan based on the percentage of employee participation and contributions, and come up with a strategy to make it available.”
At Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services, we are experts in Retirement Plans, Benefits Administration, HR and Payroll Services. We’re here to provide you with the tools to attract and keep valued employees. Contact us today to learn more.
Remote working comes with a whole new set of management challenges. Click through for some easy and inexpensive ways on handling requirements for poster compliance for your remote employees.
Continue reading
One of the big draws for any employer is the benefits it offers to its employees. Health care being one of most appealing. Here are some of the types of self-funded health care plans you can provide.
You, as the employer, set aside a fixed amount of money into the Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) each year for your employees to use. The money is available at the beginning of each year, and funds may roll over to the next year, depending on your plan. The account is funded by the employer only.
This plan can pair with your FSA Account, with funds coming out of the FSA first up to the available balance, and then rolling into this account for qualified medical purchases including co-pays and coinsurance. HRAs can also be used to purchase common health care expenses like over-the-counter items.
Employer Benefits:
A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is a self-funded health care plan that allows employees to pay for many out-of-pocket medical expenses using tax-free dollars. As the employer, you set the contribution limit, and allow your employees to fund their own accounts with pre-tax money. Employees can withdraw from these funds to pay for qualified health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket medical costs.
FSAs are meant to be used within a calendar year. At the end of the year, the employer may allow an additional month or two to use the funds, or enable a fixed amount to carry over into the next year.
The types of FSA programs Benefit Providers can set up for your employees include: Healthcare FSA, Limited FSA, Dependent Care FSA, Adoption Assistance Account. Other pre-tax plans include: Commuter Transit/Parking Plans, Education Reimbursement Accounts, Premium-Only Accounts, and Simple Cafeteria Plans.
Employer Benefits:
A Health Savings Account (HSA) offers the ability to set aside pre-tax money to pay for qualified medical expenses including deductibles, co-pays, coinsurance and other out-of-pocket expenses in order to reduce healthcare costs (not to exceed IRS maximums). It can also help with high-deductible health insurance plans to cover out-of-pocket costs. Unspent money rolls over at year’s end.
Employers, employees and others can contribute to the HSA, but to be eligible, the employee must be covered under a HAS-qualified High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP).
Employer Benefits:
Related: What is Self Funding?
The Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSE HRA) can beef up your benefits package by helping employees pay for medical coverage with tax-free funds for qualified healthcare expenses including insurance premiums, co-pays, deductibles, vision and dental care, etc. This account is funded by the employer only, with set benefit limits.
Employees can secure their own medical insurance, whether inside or outside of the marketplace, enabling them to find the coverage that best suits their personal needs.
Employer Benefits:
Explore the range of self-funded health care plans and benefits that Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services can offer. As a full-service benefits provider, we offer plan selection, plan administration, accounting, legal and administrative services. Contact us at 703-370-2226 or info@benefitproviders.com.
As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, many and local and state governments discouraged people from leaving their homes for nonessential reasons. In addition, people were afraid to visit their doctors for fear of contracting COVID-19 while at the medical practice. This resulted in an upsurge in telemedicine—physician care via the telephone or Internet.
The Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Medical Assistance Services issued a memo on March 19, 2020 outlining its flexibilities in light of the public health emergency that included expanded telehealth coverage and the waiver of certain program requirements such as specified service authorizations and prescription drug limitations.
In its definition, “’Telehealth services’ means the use of telecommunications and information technology to provide access to health assessments, diagnosis, intervention, consultation, supervision, and information across distance for both medical and behavioral health services. Telehealth services includes the use of such technologies as interactive and secure medical tablets, remote patient monitoring, and store-and-forward technologies. When delivering services via telehealth, providers are required to adhere to the same standards of clinical practice and record keeping that apply to other covered services.”
Although telemedicine, or telehealth, has been in existence for some time, it has never been more important or more utilized than now. Due to increased demand, healthcare coverage and health care programs are expanding to include telemedicine.
The benefits of telemedicine aid in decreasing barriers to healthcare access.
Results from a Research and Development Survey offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), show that prior to the pandemic, medical providers who offered telephone or video appointments ranged approximately 13%. After restrictions were put into place, those numbers increased, with now 30% offering telemedicine access to those ages 18-44 years, 40% to those ages 45-64 years, and 46% to those ages 65 and over, for an average of 38% overall.
The average number of people who scheduled a telemedicine appointment: 29% ages 18-44 years, 28% ages 45-64 years, and 31% for those ages 65 and over, for an average of approximately 25%. Females scheduled approximately 27% of those appointments, while males accounted for 21%.
Related: CDC Telemedicine Survey
Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services offers a range of benefits administration and human resources services. We’d be glad to answer your questions about telemedicine and your options as an employer to provide quality health coverage to your employees.
Please contact us at 703-370-2226 for a consultation or quote.
Remote working comes with a whole new set of management challenges. Click through for some easy and inexpensive ways on handling requirements for poster compliance for your remote employees.
Continue reading
There are two sections to the Families First Act that are important for employers to know:
The initial 10 days of leave may be unpaid, or an employee can choose to use accrued vacation, medical or personal leave, but once the initial 10 days has passed, the employer must provide paid leave for the remainder of the time away from work at two-thirds of the employee’s regular pay rate.
The provisions of the Families First Act apply to private employers with fewer than 500 employees and certain public employers. Most Federal government employees are covered by Title II of the Family and Medical Leave Act, which was not amended by this Act. Therefore, they are not covered by the expanded family and medical leave provisions laid out above. They are, however, covered by the paid sick leave provision.
Small businesses that have fewer than 50 employees may qualify for exemption from these requirements to provide leave due to school closings or child care unavailability if the leave would jeopardize the business’s ability to remain in business.
Employers will also be provided with a refundable tax credit against payroll taxes, per quarter, for the total amount of sick leave pay.
Read the Full Report: Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Employee Paid Leave Rights
An employee qualifies for paid sick time if he or she is unable to work or telework due to a need to leave for any of these COVID-19-related reasons. The employee is:
If you have questions about your role as an employer, or need assistance navigating the Families First Act, contact Benefit Providers/ECCA Payroll Services. We provide benefits administration and HR services for employers located throughout the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. Contact us at 703-370-2226.
Some jobs cannot be done from home on a long-term basis, so businesses may gradually bring employees back to offices. Click through for tips on how best to do this to protect everyone’s well-being as the pandemic subsides.
Continue readingThe IRS has issued new guidance to grant increased flexibility on 125 cafeteria plans, health flexible spending arrangements and dependent care assistance programs. Click through to learn how to take advantage of the new rules.
Continue reading
