Canadian Payroll Reporter

3 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2016 Gearing up for year-end omson Reuters' Payroll Consulting Group provides a list of tips and reminders for accurately completing and submitting T4 and RL-1 information returns BY THOMSON REUTERS' PAYROLL CONSULTING GROUP WITH 2016 almost over and February fast approaching, pay- roll professionals are turning their attention to finalizing Jan. 1 changes and preparing for 2016 year-end reporting. T4s, T4As, T4A-NRs, RL-1s and RL-2s are due by Feb. 28. The following tips can help payroll professionals stay on top of 2016 year-end reporting re- quirements: Prepare T4s for individuals who, in the ordinary course of an office or employment, received remuneration during the year, where Canada/Quebec Pension Plan (C/QPP) contributions, Employment Insurance (EI) premiums, Quebec Parental In- surance Plan (QPIP) premiums or income tax were required to be deducted or if their remu- neration exceeded $500. Remu- neration includes salary, wages, bonuses, vacation pay, commis- sions, taxable benefits, taxable allowances and retiring allow- ances. Complete T4As to report the following types of remunera- tion, if it was more than $500 or you deducted income tax from it: pension or superan- nuation payments; lump-sum payments; self-employed com- missions; annuities; patronage allocations; or other income de- scribed in the Canada Revenue Agency's (CRA) guide Deduct- ing Income Tax on Pension and Other Income, and Filing the T4A Slip and Summary (RC4157). If you paid amounts to non- residents for services rendered in Canada that they did not per- form in the ordinary course of employment, report them on a T4A-NR. If you paid or credited pensions, annuities or invest- ment income to non-residents, trusts or corporations, use form NR4 to report the amounts. The filing deadline for NR4s is Mar. 31. Besides reporting earnings and deductions to the CRA, em- ployers with Quebec employees must also prepare a year-end information return for Revenu Québec. It requires employers to complete RL-1 forms for em- ployees who reported to work at their place of business in Que- bec or who were paid from their business in Quebec if they were not required to report to work. Employers must report all sala- ries and wages regardless of the amount and whether they took source deductions. Use RL-2s to report retirement and annu- ity income. RL-1 and RL-2 forms are only available in French, but Revenu Québec provides an English translation of the box names. When completing forms, re- port earnings based on the year paid, not on the year the employ- ee earned them. For T4 boxes 16 and 17, the 2016 maximum employee CPP contribution is $2,544.30. For QPP, it is $2,737.05. On an RL-1, report QPP contributions in box B. Do not report CPP contribu- tions in box B. Instead, enter code B-1 in one of the boxes in the Renseignements complé- mentaires area, followed by the amount of CPP contributions. For T4 box 18, the maximum employee EI premium for 2016 is $955.04 for employees in all parts of Canada, except Que- bec. For Quebec employees, it is $772.16. On an RL-1, use box C to report EI premiums. In T4 box 24, report the total amount used to calculate the employee's EI premiums, up to $50,800, the maximum insur- able earnings for 2016. If the employee had no insurable earn- ings, enter "0." In T4 box 26, enter the em- ployee's C/QPP pensionable earnings for the year, up to $54,900, the maximum for 2016. On an RL-1, report the employ- ee's QPP pensionable earnings, up to $54,900, in box G. If the employee had no pensionable earnings, enter "0." If the employee contributed to both the CPP and the QPP, com- plete two T4 slips: one showing the QPP deducted and the ap- plicable pensionable earnings and remuneration the employee earned in Quebec, and the other showing the CPP deducted and the applicable pensionable earn- ings and remuneration earned in the other jurisdiction. On an RL-1, enter code G-2 in one of the boxes in the Renseignements complémentaires area, followed by the total amount of CPP pen- sionable earnings reported in box 26 on the T4. Report the employee's QPIP premiums on a T4 in box 55. In box 56, enter the total amount used to calculate the premiums, up to $71,500, the maximum for 2016. Leave the box blank if there are no insurable earnings, the insurable earnings are the same as employment income re- ported in box 14, or the insurable earnings are over the maximum for the year. For an RL-1, report employee QPIP premiums in box H. The maximum employee premium for 2016 is $391.82. Leave the box blank if you did not deduct any premiums. Do not adjust the amount if you deducted too much. Report the total amount of salary or wages from which you deducted QPIP premiums in box I, up to the $71,500 maxi- mum for 2016. If you over-deducted CPP contributions or EI premiums, do not adjust the amounts re- ported on the T4. The CRA will credit the employee with the over-contribution when he or she files a personal income tax return. To apply for a refund for the employer overpayment, complete and submit form Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2016 News CPR | December 2016 see CONSENT page 8 Credit: pogonici/Shutterstock

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