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Workers' Compensation Payments

Overview

ProPay automatically generates workers' compensation premium payments based on the payment schedule configured in your WC Carrier Setup. Payments can be issued as paper checks or ACH electronic payments.

How Automatic Payments Work

ProPay generates workers' compensation payments automatically based on the payment frequency you selected in WC Carrier Setup:

  • Monthly - Payment generated on the last pay date of each month
  • Quarterly - Payment generated on the last pay date of each calendar quarter (March 31, June 30, September 30, December 31)
  • Yearly - Payment generated on the last pay date of the year (December 31)

When you print payroll checks on the final pay date of a payment period, ProPay automatically:

  1. Calculates the total workers' compensation premium for the period
  2. Generates a check or ACH payment to the insurance carrier
  3. Prints a premium report form with detailed wage and classification information

Important: Always include the printed premium report form when mailing checks to your insurance carrier. The carrier needs this information to properly credit your account.

Payment Requirements

ProPay generates a workers' compensation payment only when all these conditions are met:

1. Payment is due

The current pay date must be the last pay date for the selected payment frequency (monthly, quarterly, or yearly).

2. Amount is due

There must be workers' compensation premiums calculated for the reporting period. Run the WC Report to verify that premiums have been calculated.

To view calculated premiums:

  1. Go to Reports > Workers' Compensation Report.
  2. Choose the date range.
  3. Review the total premium amount.

3. No duplicate payments

Any previously issued payments for this reporting period must be less than the current liability.

To check for existing payments:

  1. Go to Taxes > W/C File.
  2. Review payments already issued for the current reporting period.

If a duplicate payment exists and you need to reissue, you must delete the existing payment first.

ACH Electronic Payments

If you configured ACH payments in WC Carrier Setup, ProPay generates electronic payments in the same ACH file as employee direct deposits.

The ACH payment is created when you print payroll checks on the last pay date of the payment period. You must transmit the ACH file to your bank or third-party processor according to your normal direct deposit procedures.

Note: Ensure you entered accurate bank account information in WC Carrier Setup before enabling ACH payments.

Forcing a Workers' Compensation Payment

You can manually force a workers' compensation payment outside the normal schedule. This is useful for making mid-period payments or correcting payment issues.

To force a payment:

  1. Go to Paychecks > Print Payroll Checks.
  2. Choose For Selected Employees.
  3. Enter a valid pay date.
  4. When the employee list appears, do NOT select any employees.
  5. Click Continue.
  6. When prompted "Do you want to print Tax Deposit checks?", answer Yes.

ProPay generates any workers' compensation payments due, along with tax deposit checks.

Troubleshooting Missing Payments

If workers' compensation payments are not being generated, check these common issues:

Payment not generated on expected date

Cause: The pay date may not match the last pay date of the selected payment period.

Solution: Verify the payment frequency in WC Carrier Setup. For monthly payments, the pay date must be the last payroll date of the month. For quarterly payments, the pay date must be the last payroll date of the quarter.

No payment amount calculated

Cause: No workers' compensation premiums have been calculated for the period.

Solution:

  1. Verify that workers' compensation is enabled in Employer > Employer Setup > Screen 2.
  2. Check that classification codes are assigned to employees in Employee Add/Change.
  3. Run the WC Report to see if premiums are being calculated.
  4. If premiums show on the report but no payment is generated, check for existing payments in Taxes > W/C File.

Payment option disabled

Cause: "Do Not Pay" may be selected in WC Carrier Setup.

Solution: Go to Dept/Jobs/WC > Work/Comp Carrier and verify that either Generate Checks or Pay Electronically (ACH) is selected.

Handling Non-Standard Reporting Periods

Some workers' compensation policies have reporting periods that don't align with standard month-end or quarter-end dates. For example, a policy period might run from January 23 to April 22.

For non-standard reporting periods:

  1. ProPay can generate reports for any custom date range
  2. However, automatic payments will not be triggered
  3. You must manually generate payments using the "force payment" method described above

Recommendation: Contact your insurance carrier or agent to change the reporting periods to standard month-end or quarter-end dates. This simplifies the reporting and payment process long-term.

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