Your First Payroll Contribution Submission (Integrated Plans)

Your first payroll contribution submission is an integral part of successfully getting your plan up and running with Vestwell. Below is an outline of the first payroll contribution submission process. 

1. Provide Vestwell with complete and accurate census information for your plan.
2. Complete the setup of any payroll specifications (i.e. deduction codes, payroll groups, etc.) with your payroll provider.
3. Verify that your integration setup has been completed with your payroll provider. 
4. Submit your first payroll.
5. Review responsibilities (i.e. informing us of employee status changes) that you, as the employer, are responsible for when your plan is integrated.

Census Information

Providing a complete and accurate census is very important and will help make payroll submissions and reporting easier. A census is a list of every employee currently employed or employed at any time during the current plan year. Learn more about what is needed and why they are needed.

Setup Your Integration

Set up your payroll integration based on your payroll provider. Learn how to set up integrations.

Vestwell currently offers four different types of payroll integrations:

• 180° Integration - This is a one-way integration in which Vestwell has the ability to retrieve information directly from your payroll system; however we cannot send information back.
• 360° Integration - This is a two-way integration in which Vestwell can automatically retrieve information from your payroll system and automatically send deferral information back.
• Payroll Concierge - With this type of integration, Vestwell's team of payroll specialists accesses your payroll system so we can transfer the information between Vestwell and your payroll provider.
• No Payroll Integration - If your provider is not listed under our payroll integration list, Vestwell has designed our own proprietary payroll processing tool to make your experience as painless as possible.

Setup Payroll Specifications

Depending on your payroll integration, you may need to work with your payroll provider to set up the right payroll specifications that align with your plan design. This includes:

• Deduction Codes - Deduction codes are specific codes provided by your payroll provider that employers use to identify withheld wages on pay stubs. Employers set the codes up, which are then assigned to employees.
• Payroll Groups - Make sure any pay groups in your payroll system are also set up at Vestwell and vice versa. Setting up payroll groups will allow you to set a payment schedule and payment frequency, and select the bank account contributions will pull from.
• Safe Harbor - Set up safe harbor plans if applicable.

Submit Your First Payroll

All payroll providers that integrate with Vestwell are eligible to integrate on the first payroll date. However, please note that manual submission may be required if the setup is not completed promptly.

Submitting your payroll manually can be done from the Vestwell portal through the "Contributions" tab.

Learn how to submit your payroll here.

So Your First Payroll Has Been Submitted, Now What?

Now that your first payroll has been submitted, you are responsible for the following:

• Employee Deferrals - Maintain employee deferral rates in your payroll system depending on the integration level—180, 360, or concierge.
• Employee Status Changes - Make updates in your payroll system when employees are hired, terminated, rehired, etc.
• Employee Personal Information - Maintain complete, accurate, and up-to-date personal information within your payroll system. This includes the date of birth, social security number, and email address.
• Pay Frequency/Schedule Changes - Report any pay frequency or pay schedule changes to Vestwell.
• Review Payroll Data - We rely on you to provide us with correct, updated, and complete data about your employees regardless of whether we receive that data directly from you or from your payroll provider. Regular audits and spot checks of the data provided to us will help you quickly identify and rectify any discrepancies.

Your Plan Launch Call

During your Plan Launch Call with Vestwell, we will go over the steps for submitting your first payroll contribution. This is a good opportunity to ask any questions you may have on the contribution submission process. As a precursor to this call, you can review the following articles and videos to familiarize yourself with the contribution submission process:

• How-To Video Series - How To Submit Contributions Through Your Vestwell Employer Portal
• Vestwell Contributions Dashboard
• How Do I Submit My Payroll Contributions Through My Vestwell Employer Portal?
• Adding & Updating Employee Info During the Contribution Flow

Note: If time doesn’t allow for the payroll walkthrough to occur on the Plan Launch Call, your dedicated implementation manager will set up a separate call to discuss this.