Priority Pay's Monthly Newsletter

1. Always prepare a written business plan and financial statements. Consult your financial advisors (accountant, lawyer, etc.) before undertaking these, and have the plan and statement reviewed by your advisors after completion.
   
   
2. Decide if the company will operate as a corporation, a partnership, a sole proprietorship or a non-profit organization.
        - Obtain incorporation papers from the Secretary of State. If the business is already incorporated in another state, contact the Secretary of State to get the proper application to do business in the new state.
   
   
3. Apply for a Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) by contacting the nearest office of the Internal Revenue Service and requesting Form SS-4. You may also call the local IRS TELE-TIN hotline service, or visit the IRS’s Web site: www.irs.gov.
   
   
4. Apply for a State Sales Tax Number if the business plans to sell a taxable product or service.
   
   
5. Contact your state’s Department of Labor or Employment for unemployment insurance registration materials.
   
   
6. Contact the Workers’ Compensation Commission to determine what’s required for compliance with the Workers’ Compensation Act (this is not necessary for a sole proprietorship without employees).
   
   
7. Contact the local municipal office (town clerk, county clerk, etc.) to find out if there are any local registration or license requirements.
   
   
8. If the plan is to operate the business from a proprietor’s home, check with the local code enforcement office to ensure compliance with all local requirements.
   
   
9. Contact the Bureau of Labor Standards office to find out what is necessary for compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA).
   
   
10. Contact your state’s Department of Taxation/Revenue to request the proper paperwork for registration, and to receive instructions on withholding and paying state income taxes, sales tax, excise tax, etc.

Each new employee must complete a Form W-4 as soon as he/she reports to work, so that Federal withholding tax can be correctly computed. The W-4 must include a complete Social Security Number and will remain in effect until that employee completes a new form.

Some states have their own required version of a withholding certificate, so you should check with the state to see what is required.

If an employee does not complete a W-4 Form, the employer is required to withhold as if the person was claiming single with zero allowances. An employee must not alter the language of the W-4, and must sign it to make it a valid form.

Generally, income tax must be withheld from all wages paid to employees. The amount to be withheld is computed each pay period. You should not withhold from someone who claims exempt on the W-4. Any worker who claims this status must complete a new W-4 each year by February 15th. Anyone who claims more than 10 exemptions must be reported quarterly to the Internal Revenue Service.


You must determine if the business falls under the provisions of the Federal Wage and Hour laws, which are numerous and somewhat complicated. There is a dollar volume test for enterprise coverage, specific types of businesses that are automatically covered and what is termed "individual coverage".

Many states have additional sets of regulations for minimum wage and overtime. They may regulate areas not covered by the FLSA such as frequency of paycheck, method of payment and reporting requirements to the employee.

The FLSA applies to all employees of enterprises engaged in interstate commerce, producing goods intended for interstate commerce or working on goods that have crossed state lines (if two or more employees meet the definition of "engaged in interstate commerce," then the FLSA covers the entire business).

Employees of businesses not covered through "enterprise coverage" can still be covered as individuals if they are involved in interstate commerce or the production of goods for interstate commerce.

Interstate commerce is quite broadly defined as employees who:

• Work in communications or transportation
• Regularly use the mail or telephone for interstate communication
• Keep records of interstate transactions
• Handle, ship, or receive goods that have crossed state lines
• Cross state lines for employment purposes

Exceptions to coverage under the FLSA are rare, but the most common one is the small business exemption. The dollar volume test for this exemption is $500,000, meaning that if the enterprise has an annual gross sales volume less than $500,000, than it is not covered by the Federal Labor Standards Act and state laws will still apply.

Employees of enterprises found not to be covered by the FLSA may still be covered on an individual basis if the duties performed meet the definition of interstate commerce. Therefore, even if an employer meets the small business requirement as a whole, one employee could still be considered as covered by the FLSA, and the employer would have to follow the federal requirements for recordkeeping, minimum wage and overtime. Consult the local Wage and Hour office for more detailed information on the FLSA, as well as the applicable state regulations. Exemptions and exceptions are usually narrowly defined, and employers must be extremely careful when making determinations.


Federal law requires every employer to report each new hire and rehire to a designated state agency, and requires all states to conform to a set of minimum standards for the information that must be reported:

• Each new hire’s name, address and SSN
• Employer’s name, address and federal employer ID#

However, the law also gives stated the option of requiring employers to report additional information, such as the new hire’s date of hire, date of birth, state of hire and other relevant data. States also have the freedom to set their own deadlines for reporting.

Failure to comply with these laws can lead to financial penalties and other serious problems. That’s why for some employers, keeping up with changing state standards and compliance guidelines ca be an unwanted burden.


Because we already maintain all the pertinent employee data, Priority Pay can assist you with New Hire Reporting compliance automatically, at no additional service to our high-precision payroll processing.

Our team of compliance experts saves you the responsibility of keeping up with changing state statutes and meeting filing deadlines. We can also save you substantial costs in personnel and productivity when you compare our service to the cost of having an employee within your organization be responsible for these duties.

When you choose this convenient, value-added service, Priority Pay automatically generates a New Hire Report each week that includes all new hires and rehires that occurred within that week. If you are a non-weekly payroll client, we recommend that you call in any new hires between pay periods to ensure compliance with your particular state requirements.

Priority Pay forwards these reports directly to the appropriate state agencies, with the same degree of accuracy and timeliness we apply to all your payroll and tax filing requirements. It’s another great way we take care of the details…so you can get back to business.

Priority Pay Payroll Hires Jose Figueroa as Vice President of Operations

Hoboken, NJ (Oct 15th, 2006)- Priority Pay Payroll Services one of the nations premier payroll processors recently announced that it has hired veteran PayChex alum Jose Figueroa as Vice President of Operations.

Jose arrives at Priority Pay from PayChex, where he was one of the company’s top supervisors. In almost 13 years with PayChex, Jose grew into a top supervisor role and recently was the Branch Manager of their Harrisburg, Pennsylvania branch. At that location Jose managed 2 supervisors, 12 payroll specialists, and over 2,300 clients.

"Priority Pay is thrilled to acquire someone with Jose’s success and experience," said Jerry Carter, CEO.

Jose will oversee the entire company operational staff and will be in charge of hiring payroll professionals.

CPA BONUS ALL REFERRALS MADE BY CPA RECEIVE THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF PAYROLL PROCESSING FOR FREE	"Thank you Priority Pay for making my life easier. I know when I refer business; you take care of my clients." -CPA, NJ

As a CPA, you are considered your client’s Most Trusted Business Advisor. Your business has been built on your ability to help your clients by providing them with sound advice, creative ideas and reliable referrals.

Have you ever been asked about payroll? Did you ever refer one of the big payroll companies? How did it work out? Was your client happy? Did the referral make you look good? Probably not.

Priority Pay...Payroll services accountants can rely on!

Priority Pay has been working with the CPA community for years. We know what you want, we understand what you need and we speak your language.

Have more control of my client's payroll

• Reduce non-billable time
• Work with a reliable payroll company
• Work with someone who understands what accountants need. We understand the issues accountants are faced with...

"I want more control over payroll."
Priority Pay gives you complete control over your payroll.

• Complete access to client’s payroll reports
• Payroll reports available online
• Customized Reports available
• Duplicate Reports (client and accountant) at no extra charge

"I want to reduce my non-billable time"

• There are more productive uses of your time
• Payroll work can not be billed at standard fees
• Your practice is not set up to do payroll work
• It takes too much time for you to do payroll
• Payroll is not a value added service

"A payroll service accountants can rely on!"

• Experienced staff empowered to answer questions and fix problems
• CPAs are Priority Pay’s #1 referral source
• A level of flexibility the big payroll companies can’t provide

"I want to work with a payroll company that understands what accountants need."

• QuickBooks Interface – Priority Pay can map your client’s QuickBooks to our software. Journal entries will flow right into QuickBooks. Fewer year end journal entries that you will have to make.
• Excel spreadsheets to manipulate data

At Priority Pay we are committed to helping you cement your client’s relationship. We will work hard to instill in you a sense of confidence and conviction in our ability to render the highest quality product and exceptional customer service. This is what it’s all about. We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and discuss the benefits of working with Priority Pay, a reliable and professional payroll company committed to serving the CPA community.

CPA BONUS
ALL REFERRALS MADE BY CPA
RECEIVE THE FIRST TWO MONTHS
OF PAYROLL PROCESSING FOR FREE