Going Green is more than just being environmentally friendly. It also means saving time and money, which goes right to the bottom line, putting more green in your pocket. While being environmentally responsible is becoming an important part of being a good corporate citizen, there are lots of reasons to take advantage of the various time and money saving features of the INTERAC accounting system. 

Going paperless with the Document Management System
Besides being more environmentally friendly, you can save lots of time, money, and space by eliminating paper from your routine processes. 

• Automatically generate pdf copies of payroll and AP checks instead of printing paper copies.
• Automatically email these copies to employees and vendors instead of distributing paper copies.
• Receive and process electronic invoices from vendors.
• Submit electronic invoices to your customers.
• Convert all those boxes of paper in the archives to electronic files and eliminate all the hours of filing and free up that space. 

Taking advantage of Direct Deposit capabilities in both AP and Payroll. 
INTERAC will automatically generate and file the direct deposit statements, and it can even email copies directly to employees or vendors. For employees that don’t utilize traditional banking, the ePayCard service may be an attractive option.

Utilizing the Manager Applications 
Easily share critical information with key team members with direct, view only access to all the data they need from a simple point and click interface. All the manager applications also integrate with the Document Management System to allow users to scan, add, and manage the associated documents. 

• Job Manager provides direct access to all the Job Cost information, including documentation.
• HR Manager provides instant access to the wealth of employee information from Payroll.
• Equipment Manager provides easy access to all your Equipment Cost information and documents.
• Report Manager provides each user with their own custom menu of INTERAC reports, and it is integrated with the other manager applications for easy access.

E-File your federal and state taxes instead of printing and mailing the forms. INTERAC will generate the necessary upload files for federal and all 50 states. 
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These a just a few of the ways you can save time and money and become more environmentally friendly. If you would like to learn more about taking advantage of these options, we would be happy to show you how. Give us a call.

​Firms responsible for payroll processing are also likely to have been impacted by the new Affordable Care Act reporting requirements. While the IRS has issued an extension of the due dates for 2015 ACA reporting, the requirements must still be met. 

If you are dealing with the reporting changes mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), it is also likely that you still have some questions. The answers to several of the most common questions were provided by Iris Tilley in her article “IRS Releases Final 2015 ACA Reporting Forms and Instructions”.

To comply with these filing requirements, Intersoft has implemented a number of changes to the INTERAC Payroll system. 

• New fields added to the employee master file record to store all of the information that is required on the 1095 forms.
• Information can be added manually into the employee record using the Master File Maintenance program.
• Information can also be imported into the employee’s record from an Excel or CVS file using Interlink Master Import.
• Year end 1094 and 1095 forms will be produced through the Complete Laser Forms software. Pre-printed forms will not be supported. 

​Compiling Employee’s Data
To simplify the initial setup, spreadsheet templates may be used to import both the employee’s information and the covered individuals (dependents) information. For your convenience, Intersoft has made sample templates and instructions available for download. Contact Intersoft Systems support to request a copy.

Laser 1094 and 1095 Forms
INTERAC Payroll will generate the forms as part of the Laser Forms package. If you currently license that product the required forms are included. To add the Laser Forms Package to your INTERAC system, complete and submit your order.

The IRS has extended the reporting dates for 1094 and 1095 filing, giving you some additional time to get your information together and the reports submitted. 

Specifically, this notice extends the due dates for: 

1. Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, from February 1, 2016, to March 31, 2016
2. Form 1095-C, Employer Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, from February 1, 2016, to March 31, 2016
3. Form 1094-B, Transmittal of Health Coverage Information Returns, from February 29, 2016, to May 31, 2016 (paper filing), or from March 31, 2016, to June 30, 2016 (electronic filing).
4. Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, from February 29, 2016, to May 31, 2016 (paper filing), or from March 31, 2016, to June 30, 2016 (electronic filing).
5. Form 1094-C, Transmittal of Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Information Returns, from February 29, 2016, to May 31, 2016 (paper filing), or from March 31, 2016, to June 30, 2016 (electronic filing).
6. Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage,  from February 29, 2016, to May 31, 2016 (paper filing), or from March 31, 2016, to June 30, 2016 (electronic filing).
7. This notice also provides guidance to individuals who might not receive a Form 1095-B or Form 1095-C by the time they file their 2015 tax returns.

Read the entire IRS notice.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued the 2016 standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2016, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup, or panel truck will be:

• 54 cents per mile for business miles driven, down from 57.5 cents for 2015.
• 19 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, down from 23 cents for 2015.
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations.

Read the full post from the IRS.

Written by IRIS TILLEY (Barran Liebman LLP) - 9/22/15

As many employers are all too aware, ACA reporting has been looming on the horizon for some months now. However, preparations have been exceedingly difficult because employers have been left only with draft forms and outdated instructions as a framework for their planning. On September 17, 2015, the IRS finally remedied this situation by issuing final reporting forms and instructions for 2015. While these final forms and instructions are filled with typical IRS minutia, we have summarized the top takeaways here (along with a little background information to set the stage).

1. What is ACA reporting, and does it matter to my company?
   Today, references to ACA reporting relate to a set of forms the IRS is using to enforce the tax penalties under the ACA. This reporting is separate from and in addition to the IRS’s mandate that larger employers report the cost of some health coverage on employees’ Forms W-2. Instead of reporting only the cost of coverage, this reporting is used by the IRS to determine which employers are offering health coverage to their full-time employees and which individuals had health coverage in a given year. Through the reported information, the IRS plans to enforce the individual mandate, which requires individuals to maintain health coverage or pay a tax, and the employer mandate, which penalizes applicable large employers (ALEs) who do not offer health coverage to a sufficient number of their full-time employees or offer coverage that is either unaffordable or insufficient. Employers with an average of 50 or more full-time and full-time equivalent employees on business days in the proceeding calendar year (i.e., applicable large employers or ALEs) and all employers with self-insured plans are required to report. For the upcoming reporting cycle, this means that employers with a sufficient employee count in 2014 have an obligation to report information related to the offers of health coverage they made to full-time employees in 2015. Employers with insured plans are not required to report whether an employee or his or her dependents actually enrolled in coverage; that information is left up to the insurers to report. ALEs with self-insured plans will report both offers of coverage and enrollment information. Smaller employers with self-insured plans will only report actual enrollment.
   
   
2. Isn’t the IRS going to delay this reporting again? 
   No, the IRS is not likely to delay reporting again. It has stated that it will not impose penalties where an employer makes a good faith effort to comply, but the IRS’s affirmative step in releasing final forms and instructions signals that employers will not see an additional delay in reporting requirements.
   
   
3. When are the forms due? 
   The forms are due in early 2016 for offers of coverage made in 2015. Employers will distribute Form 1095-C to employees on a W-2 schedule, which is February 1, 2016 for 2015 forms. Form 1094-C is a transmittal form which will not go to employees but which will go to the IRS. Both Forms 1094-C and 1095-C will go to the IRS on the same schedule in February or March of 2016, depending upon whether the employer or insurer files the forms electronically.
   
   
4. Are the final forms different from the draft forms? 
   A few boxes have been moved around from their positions on the draft forms, but the final forms are not substantively different than the draft forms.
   
   
5. What do the final instructions do with HRA Reporting? 
   The final instructions clarify that employers sponsoring both an insured major medical plan and a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) do not need to issue separate forms for each of these offerings. The prior instructions indicated the opposite.
   
   
6. Do I really need to report COBRA offers of coverage? 
   Whether COBRA is a reportable offer of coverage depends on whether an employee has terminated employment. Where an employee has terminated employment, the final instructions clarify that an employer would not report that it had offered coverage to an employee in a given month based solely on COBRA coverage. However, where an employee is an ongoing employee who lost health coverage due to a reduction in hours, COBRA would be reported.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has mandated major changes to the reporting requirements of companies that process payroll. 
Intersoft has been working on changes to INTERAC to comply with the filing requirements 2015. These changes are included in the new INTERAC.NET program which began shipping in September.

The following updates were made to INTERAC Payroll to comply with the ACA reporting requirements:

• New fields added to the employee master file record to store all of the information that is required on the 1095 forms.
• Information can be added manually into the employee record using the Master File Maintenance program.
• Information can also be imported into the employee’s record from an Excel or CVS file using Interlink Master Import.
• Year end 1094 and 1095 forms will be produced through the Complete Laser  Forms software. Pre-printed forms will not be supported.  (Laser Forms license required - Laser Forms Package Order)

Compiling Employee’s Data
Spreadsheet templates may be used to import both the employee’s information and the covered individuals (dependents) information. For your convenience, these templates and instructions are available for download. Contact Intersoft Systems support to request a link.

Laser 1094 and 1095 Forms
The forms will be produced as part of the Laser Forms package. If you currently license that product you will receive those forms as part of the year end update. Complete the Laser Forms Package Order to add this option to your INTERAC system.