Synopsis
This article explains what the employer’s payroll contact needs to do each payroll to make sure employee 401(k) contributions are withheld correctly and submitted to Empower on time.
Who this helps
Plan sponsor payroll contact
Anyone responsible for running payroll, withholding 401(k) deductions, and submitting contributions to Empower
What you are responsible for (and what Aboon does)
As the employer, your role is to:
Withhold employee 401(k) contributions through payroll.
Submit those contributions to Empower after payroll runs.
Aboon supports the plan as the 3(16) administrator, including:
Eligibility tracking
Required participant notices
3 things to verify before payroll runs
Before you process payroll, verify these items:
Employee elections are entered in payroll
Use the latest Empower election/deferral report to update your payroll system.
Make sure any new elections, changes, and opt-outs are reflected in payroll before you run payroll.
Contribution amounts match the election report
Confirm the contribution percentages (and any dollar-based elections, if applicable) match what is shown on the Empower report.
Confirm pre-tax vs Roth elections are mapped to the correct payroll deduction codes.
The correct employees are included
Eligible employees should have deductions set up.
Employees who opted out should not have deductions withheld.
After payroll runs: confirm deductions were withheld
After payroll is complete:
Review your payroll register to confirm the 401(k) contributions were actually withheld from employee paychecks.
Submit contributions to Empower
Once payroll is finalized:
Submit employee contributions to Empower.
Best practice is to submit contributions the same day payroll is completed.
Best practices (to avoid common issues)
Make contribution submission part of your standard payroll routine.
Do not combine multiple payrolls into one contribution submission.
Keep a consistent payroll funding and submission process each pay period.
Employee contributions become plan assets once withheld, so timely submission is important.