Q.- We just realized that we have been withholding too much from an employee's pay for benefits. What should we do?
A.- Hopefully the mistake was discovered before the end of the year. If that is the case, the excess salary reduction should be returned to the participant as regular (taxable) compensation. There should be few or no reporting issues for the employee, but a correction might be required on Form 941. You should also review your state payroll tax reporting to see if any corrections will have to be made. If the error is discovered after the end of the year, the extra salary reduction amount should still be paid back to the employee, but it is likely that there will be more reporting considerations. You should consult a business tax advisor.
