Payroll
Policy
FIACCT 11-05_00 Payroll – Social Security Card Verification
Effective: November 1, 1990
Revised: March 6, 2017
Reviewed: March 10, 2017
Purpose
To outline responsibilities and procedures regarding verification of employee name and social security number (SSN), as shown on employee’s social security card. This policy applies to all State of Utah government employees.
Background
Under IRS guidelines, employers who file W-2 forms on time but with incorrect information will be assessed penalties for employee W-2 forms with incorrect information. The amount of penalty is based on how soon a corrected return is filed (Internal Revenue Code Sec. 6721).
Policy
A. Department of Human Resource Management (DHRM) staff should verify that all employee social security numbers and names entered on the HR Enterprise System are exactly the same as shown on the employee’s social security card. Normally, an imaged copy of the Social Security Card is created
as part of the DHRM new hire process. (Data from the HRE System is uploaded to the Payroll System.
B. The DAS Division of Finance Payroll Section staff should verify that the SSN in the payroll system matches the copy of the card. The Social Security Administration verification systems will also be used by DAS Division of Finance Payroll Section.
C. If IRS penalties are assessed to the State for employees whose names and/or social security numbers are incorrect, they will be charged to the employee’s agency. Penalty amounts are per occurrence per calendar year. The IRS penalty schedule ranges from $15.00 to $50.00.
D. The DAS Division of Finance recommends that copies of the social security card be used when entering employee information into the HR Enterprise System. This protects the agency against incorrect information input to the HR Enterprise System.
E. A Receipt for Application for a social security number may be used to verify a name if the employee does not have a social security card or if the employee is in the process of making a name change.
F. If a Receipt for Application for a social security number is used to verify the name for new employees, a copy of the new social security card should be requested to verify the employee’s name and social security number have been entered correctly on the HR Enterprise System.
G. Errors should be corrected immediately in the HR Enterprise System.
H. Changes to employee names must be verified with either a copy of the social security card or Receipt for Application for a social security number. (See FIACCT 11-16.00 Name Changes for details)
I. If the Social Security card states: “Not Valid for Employment” or “Valid for Employment with INS Authorization,” the employee must also show an unexpired INS employment authorization form(s). Otherwise, the employee may be working illegally.
Responsibility
Action
Employee
Provide DHRM with a copy of a valid social security card. New hires are asked to do this in the new hire ‘Onboarding’ Process.
If you change your name, contact the Social Security Administration to obtain a new Social Security Card. Send a copy of the new card and a new IRS Form W-4 with the new name to DHRM or the Division of Finance Payroll section.
Department of
Human Resource
Management
Enter the social security number and name of employee into the HR Enterprise System exactly as they appear on the employee’s social security card.
For employees with name changes, tape a copy of the social security card or Receipt for Application for a social security number to the back of the W-4 sent to Division of Finance Payroll Section.
Follow up with employees who have applied for a social security card and obtain a copy of the card when it is available. Send a copy of the card to the Division of Finance Payroll section.
If the social security card states: “Not valid for employment,” or “Valid for work only with INS authorization,” a copy of the INS authorization, visa, should be sent to the Division of Finance Payroll section. If the person does not have a valid INS work authorization, they should not be employed.
If any incorrect social security numbers are discovered, notify the DAS Division of Finance Payroll Section to make the correction in both the Payroll and the HRE system.
DAS Division of
Finance Payroll
Section
Compare the employee’s SSN with a copy or image of the SS card. If a card is not available, call the SSA’s SSN verification call center.
In December each year, send a data file to SSA to have them verify all employees’ SSN and name data.
If any incorrect social security numbers are discovered, make the correction in both the Payroll and the HRE system.