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Deadline to File Annual Reports - February 28th 

The deadline for filing your annual reports of service and compensation, February 28, 2005, has just expired. If you still have not filed your reports, please do so immediately. Contact us if there are any problems.

It is imperative that we receive this information for the benefit of your employees. Your employees need this data reported on their records so that they can verify that their employment was correctly reported and they can track their status for eligibility for benefits from this agency. And besides, it’s the law!

Reminder to Employers About Making RUIA Contributions

Please remember to use your new 2005 Contribution Rates when calculating your RUIA tax deposits. We notified you of your rates on Forms ID-40R/S which were sent out to all employers in October 2004. The maximum earnings subject to RUIA contribution for 2005 is $1,150 per month. If you did not receive the notification please contact us:

Address Reports for New Hires due April 1

Employers are required to file with the Railroad Retirement Board an address report for new hires. This report is due by April 1 each year. The report may be filed on a Form BA-6a, Address Report or through the Employer Reporting System (ERS), on the Internet. If you have no new hires, no address report is necessary.

Please note, you do NOT have to report address changes for current employees. The employees themselves are responsible for reporting that information to the RRB. If however, you choose to file changes of address, please indicate this on the Form G-440 which accompanies the report. It may help to remind your employees to file changes of address with the RRB by calling or mailing the information to their local RRB office.

Automated Reporting

The RRB recently released the RRB PC Reporting program to all employers who file paper reports. This program will allow you to complete all of your annual reports in an automated format which will reduce the number of manual errors which result from processing paper reports. The program is compatible with Windows 2000 and Windows Office XP operating systems.

We can also help you to convert any payroll data you store on a spreadsheet into the required automated report format. We will send you the instructions and a QRSC Specialist can walk you through the process. If you filed your 2003 BA-3a Annual Report on paper, let us know the problems that are preventing you from switching to an automated format. Contact QRSC at the telephone number or through our e-mail account listed on the front in the header.

Employee Name Changes

Some employers have received or will receive Form GL-24, "Advising of Incorrect SSA Number", for an employee whose name and/or social security number does not match the name and/or social security number on file at the Social Security Administration (SSA).

We have received some GL-24's indicating that the social security number is correct but the employees changed their name. If the name you submitted is not the current name on file at the SSA, (for example, a female employee married or an employee switched his/her first and /or middle name, etc.) we corrected the name to match with the SSA. This decision was made due to the threat of identity theft and to make the employees aware that their name may be incorrect at the SSA.

If employees have changed their name they should complete and file Form SS-5, Application for Social Security Card, with the SSA to correct that agency's records. The RRB will release Form BA-6, Certificate of Service Months and Compensation, in June '05. If the employee names are incorrect, please advise them that this is the current name on file at SSA. Once they correct their name at SSA, the employees should contact their nearest RRB District Office to report their name change.

Important Reporting Notice for Employers with Canadian Employees without a U. S. Social Security Number

Effective Immediately employers can no longer report service and/or compensation to the RRB using pseudo numbers (i.e. numbers beginning with “999” or “000” plus the payroll number) for Canadian employees without a valid U.S. SSN. Employers are now required to report any service and compensation for a Canadian employee to the RRB using a valid U.S. SSN as required by law, or a valid Canadian Social Insurance Number (SIN). Employers should only use an employee Canadian SIN if an employee does not have a U.S. SSN.

New instructions on how to complete an annual or adjustment report for employees who do not have a valid U.S. SSN, were released in program letter PL 2005-05 to known employers with Canadian employees on December 30, 2004. Employers should continue to file reports for Canadian employees with a valid U.S. SSN in accordance with the Reporting Instructions to Employers manual.