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Labor Relations
Maintaining Payroll Records
According to the IRS, employers should keep the following information with their payroll records:
- Employer identification number (EIN) and W-2s
- The amounts and dates of all wage, annuity and pension payments
- Fair market value of non-cash compensation paid
- Names, addresses, Social Security numbers and job description of employees
- Forms W-2 that were returned as undeliverable
- Employee file showing dates of employment
- Copies of employees’ withholding allowance certificates (Form W-4)
- Dates and amounts of tax deposits
- Copies of payroll returns filed
- Documentation of fringe benefits included in W-2
The IRS requires all employment related information to be kept for a period of four years from the date a tax return is filed, or the tax on the return is paid, whichever is later. How important is it to keep this information? A willful failure to keep this required information can result in tax penalties.
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