Set up the employee retirement settings to report 401(k) amounts to Empower. You will need to set up the new settings before creating the state retirement file to send to Empower.

There are three new employee settings for the Empower retirement file: 

1. Empower eligibility indicator checkbox
   
2. Empower participation date
   
3. Empower salary qualifier
   

Modify Existing Employees is updated in the 2025.05 release to report employee 401(k) amounts to Empower. 

Updating the employee retirement settings to report 401(k) contributions to Empower

For each employee who contributes to a 401(k), set up the Empower eligibility indicator checkbox, Empower participation date, and Empower salary qualifier. 

Do this...

1. Open Connect Payroll > Employees > Modify Existing Employees. 

2. Click to select the Job tab. 

3. Click to select the Retirement tab. 

4. Set up the settings.  

1. Enrollment file
   
2. Payroll transmittal file
   
3. PERSI status/class change file

5. Click Save  (CTRL+S).

Setting up the enrollment file

An enrollment file is the data file that an employer sends to a retirement plan provider (like a 401(k), 403(b), or pension administrator) to register employees in the retirement plan. This file contains key information needed to set up or update employee accounts and ensure they are properly tracked for retirement contributions and benefits. 

To set up the enrollment file, set up these fields: 

1. Eligibility status
   
2. Employment type
   

Setting up the payroll transmittal file

A payroll transmittal file (also called a contribution file) is a detailed report that an employer sends to a retirement plan provider or pension system to report employee and employer retirement contributions for a specific payroll period. 

It communicates how much was withheld from each employee's paycheck (employee contributions) and how much the employer is contributing (employer match or required contribution), so the retirement provider can: 

• Allocate funds to the correct participant accounts

• Ensure compliance with plan rules

• Track vesting and service credits (especially for defined benefit plans)

• Reconcile payroll and plan records

To set up the payroll transmittal file, set up these fields: 

1. Contract percentage
   
2. Invoice number
   
3. Employment type
   

Setting up the PERSI status/class change file

PERSI (Public Employee Retirement System of Idaho), the Status/Class Change File is a specific type of report that employers submit to notify PERSI of change in an employee's eligibility status or membership class. 

This file informs PERSI when there are changes to: 

• An employee's retirement plan membership status (for example, from non-member to active member).
  

• Eligibility changes that affect retirement plan participation. 
  

These updates are essential for PERSI to properly:

• Track retirement service credit.

• Assign the correct contribution rates.

• Determine benefit calculations. 

Common reasons for this file: 

• Employee moves from part-time to full-time (and becomes PERSI-eligible). 

• Employee is rehired after a break in service. 

• Job transfer that changes employee's membership class (for example, transferring into police/fire).

• Employee becomes inactive, retires, or terminates. 

To set up the PERSI status/class change file, set up these fields: 

1. Status reason date
   
2. Status reason code
   
3. Empower eligibility indicator
   
4. Empower participation date
   
5. Empower salary qualifier
   

Eligibility status

Enter the eligibility status for the employee:

• ELIG (PERSI-eligible)

• NPEL (not PERSI-eligible)

• RETC (reitred contributing)

Status reason code

Enter the status reason for the last status change within a pay cycle:

• [Blank] (The reason is unchanged from the prior pay cycle.)

• CORR (Corrected hire date. First day on the job. Correcting an existing row for the hire date.)

• CLS (Class change)

• LDW (Last day worked)

• DECD (Deceased)

• ELIG (Eligible)

• INEL (Remains employed, but no longer meets eligibility requirements. For example, Dropped to part time)

• LWOP (On leave without pay)

• MILL (On military leave)

• MCMW (On workers compensation and salary is being made whole.)

• WCOM (On workers compensation)

Status reason date

Enter the date for the last status or class change within a pay cycle. 

Invoice number

Enter the invoice number for the employee who is paying back a PERSI Base Plan loan. This field is required if the member has an open loan. 

Employment type

Enter the employee's employment type: 

• R (Regular)

• E (Elected/Appointed officials)

Contract percentage

Enter the employee's contract percentage. It should be a whole number between 0 and 100. This field is required unless the employee is reported with hours wokred or is an ORP (Optional Retirement Plan) member. 

Empower eligibility indicator checkbox

If the employee contributes to the PERSI Choice 401(k) plan (administered by the Empower Retirement System), select this checkbox. 

Empower participation date 

Enter the participation date for the Empower system. The participation date is the specific date an employee becomes an active participant in the PERSI Choice 401(k) plan. 

Empower salary qualifier 

Select a salary qualifier based on the employee's pay agreement. Empower will use this field in the employee Empower dashboard to show estimations and contribution calculations.

• Hourly employees. Select H (Hourly). The salary amount is the employee's hourly wage. 

• Salary employees. Select the employee pay frequency (bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly). The salary amount is the employee's annual wage divided by the pay frequency. 

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