Introduction
Empeon offers a service that sends checks or ACH payments to third-party payees (Agencies) responsible for administering mandated deductions or providing deduction benefits for employees. An agency can also be linked to Memo-type earnings, typically used to track employer-provided benefits. When using this agency service, the employer does not need to handle payments for the associated employee deductions or benefits—Empeon takes care of it.
Agency Set Up
Before Empeon can manage payments to an Agency for a deduction or benefit, the Agency's information must be set up at the company level. This involves registering the Agency's contact details, specifying the payment method and setting up the payment frequencies.
To set up an Agency, navigate to the Payroll section within the Company tab, and select the Agencies Card.
Within the Agencies Card, it will show any Agency that has been set up within the system as well as the option to add a new one. In the top right corner, there is a blue button labeled "+ New Agency" to add a new Agency.
When setting up a new Agency, a window will appear, prompting entry of the following fields to configure the Agency's general settings:
- Code - Enter a code for this agency. This code will be the system's coding/reports record for all payments sent to the agency. The code can't be more than 10 characters and shouldn't include special characters.
- Name - The text that is in this field is what will be on the payee line of the check that is sent to the Agency. Therefore, make sure that the name identified in this field is exactly the entity that the Agency wants the check to be made out to.
- Address, City, State, Zip Code - Physical check payments will be sent to the address identified in these fields. Therefore, be sure to key in the exact address that the Agency requires that the payment be sent.
After the information within the general settings of the Agency is entered, click 'Next' to configure how payment will be transmitted to this Agency. On this screen, the following fields of information will be prompted:
- Payment Method - This will establish how the Agency will be paid. There are three options to choose from: Check, ACH, and ACH-Child Support. Payments sent by physical check are mailed via first class US Postal Service. If choosing an ACH payment, be sure to enter the exact Routing and Account number needed to ensure the ACH payment goes through to the intended party. Child Support ACH payments usually need to have an FIPS code identified, contact Empeon Customer Service for assistance in acquiring the correct FIPS code.
- Payment Frequency - Establish the frequency that payments that will be sent to the agency. The frequency of agency payments does not need to match the frequency in which the deduction is taken. For example, Union Dues may be deducted from employees every payroll, but the payment to the Agency (the Union) can be set to only send the check at the last payroll of the month. The check will include all the Union deductions taken for that same month.
- Important Note: There are technical considerations that must be reviewed when changing payment frequencies for existing Agencies that are actively being paid from Empeon. For any circumstances where a change to an existing Agency's payment frequency is needed, be sure to first contact Empeon Customer Service for guidance.
- Empeon debits the employer's payroll account for agency-related deductions every payroll, regardless of the frequency that the agency payment is sent.
- Suppress SSN - The Agency payment stub will list each employee and their payments that total to the check's amount. This is so the Agency can confirm the employees and amounts paid that are associated with the Agency check. By default, to help the Agency identify each individual involved, the SSN is listed alongside the employee’s name. Click this option to not display the SSN if desired.
- Last Paid - When an Agency is first set up this will automatically default to 'Never'. However, once the agency is applied to their first payment and on, this field will be populated with the date that a payment was last sent.
- Important Note: Though this field can be manually overridden, Empeon strongly recommends not to do so in order to avoid payment errors. For any questions about the last payment date shown in this field, contact Empeon Customer Service.
Once all fields on this screen have been attended to, click 'Save'. The Agency is now set up within the system and available to be linked to earnings or deductions. For instructions on how to link an Agency to a deduction for individual employees, please review Empeon's article Employee Deduction Setup.