Thinking about switching payroll companies?
Generally the employees of a firm are paid based on the agreed rate, hours worked or a fixed amount. Besides the basic pay, details such as other benefits availed by employees, the local taxes payable etc. are to be recorded by the employing company for tax and auditing purposes. Certain companies prefer to hire a payroll company, having expertise in handling these transactions for more efficiency in exchange for a fee. This also permits the employer more time to concentrate on the core business.
The employer furnishes the payroll service provider with all the necessary details pertaining to the employees’ payroll that will in turn carry out the payroll process. Payroll processing includes execution of tasks which are essential to ensure the employees of the client’s organisation are paid correctly and on time. Once the data is processed, funds are transferred by the employer to the payroll service provider’s account who’ll either directly deposit into the employees account or issue standard checks. Furthermore, the payroll service provider has to periodically provide the employer with tax and payroll reports.
Most companies today opt for biometric payroll control service which requires the employee to be physically present to track their working hours. This will further aid in determining accurate payroll costs and help the employer save on money which may be lost to fraudulent practices otherwise, if not, then its time to think about switching payroll companies.
In case you’re present payroll service provider has made you liable to more tax penalties or perhaps created frequent glitches in the payrolls of employees, it’s time to change payroll companies. There are hundreds of payroll providers available in the market today, ranging from small to big sized companies. However, here are a few guidelines to be kept in mind while searching for the perfect payroll company:
Firstly, the employer needs to ascertain the reason why a change in the payroll service provider is needed prior to researching on other service providers. This will help the owner to know what he needs when looking into the prospective payroll providers to avoid previous errors and mishaps.
It is always advisable to change payroll companies either at the start of the calendar year or at the end of a quarter to ease the issue as taxes are paid quarterly.
While switching payroll companies, the employer should cross check the credentials of the prospective payroll providers and ask for verifiable references to ensure they are certified. Certified providers are generally more reliable and efficient.
It is also important for the employer to know about the number of staff the provider has. Should there be an emergency or a priority payroll; the payroll processors should be available for immediate execution.
It’s a good idea to compare the prices quoted by different payroll providers before deciding on whom to hire in order to get the best service for reasonable charges. That’s the basic idea of hiring a payroll service provider in the first place. The payroll service provider’s fee is dependent on factors such as:
The number of employees whose payroll is to be processed
The turnover of the company
The frequency of pay checks to be issued.
The complexity of payroll involved like change in rates, multiple pay periods, etc.
Additional services offered like management of labour issues, direct deposit of pay checks, and assistance with tax compliance, etc.
Consider going through the fees charged and the terms and conditions of the new payroll provider to ensure there are no hidden charges or clauses which may cause conflicts later. Switching payroll companies should not have to be hard, only beneficial!
