Employee and contractor personal information is collected by employers when someone starts a new job, but keeping this information up-to-date can be challenging. It’s important to keep this information current in your payroll system since it can impact tax calculations and employee/contractor individual tax returns. Outdated information can result in corrections that can delay tax filings, penalties and interest that employers must pay, and undeliverable W-2s and 1099s.
Whether you’re an employer, employee or contractor, it’s in your best interest to keep this information as current as possible.
Here’s why:
Legal name + Social Security number: When employees and contractors file their personal tax returns, the name and SSN on their W-2s/1099s need to match the what is printed on their Social Security card. Mismatches can cause delays in processing returns and sending refunds, so it’s better to ensure it’s right in Homebase.
Work address: Work addresses is the physical location where your employees and/or contractors are working, and they’re used to calculate tax liabilities, and, for contractors, are also used to file state 1099s in states that require them. A common mistake with work addresses is when an employee or contractor works remotely (from home or another office location) and this isn’t reflected in payroll, it can result in improper tax calculations.
Employee/contractor home address: Some tax agencies use home address to determine tax liabilities, so keeping this information up to date is extremely important. When employees/contractors go to file their personal taxes the following year, they may run into issues if payments were made to the wrong state, county or city tax agencies. In addition, we use an individual's home address to mail their W-2 and/or 1099s, so out-of-date addresses can result in delays of form delivery.
How do I update this information?
For employees and contractors, you can update this information through your profile settings.
In the app, go to More in the bottom right, then click Profile.
Employers can generally update this for their employees/contractors through their profiles on the Team section in Homebase.
Still have questions? Feel free to reach out and we’d be glad to help!
To contact support, click here to log in or email us at payroll@joinhomebase.com
