Contribution Testing
Recalculate deferrals against the election, apply contribution and catch-up limits, and tie pre-tax and Roth amounts across the payroll report, W-2, pay stub, and trust statement.
Recalculates deferrals against the election, applies contribution and catch-up limits, and ties pre-tax and Roth amounts across the payroll report, W-2, pay stub, and trust statement.
Purpose
To verify the accuracy and completeness of employee deferrals and employer contributions by recalculating contributions against the participant's election, applying IRC contribution and catch-up limits, and tying pre-tax and Roth amounts across the payroll register, W-2, pay stub, and trust statement.
Procedures
- Agree the deferral amounts on the participant's signed 401(k) election form to the amounts withheld on the pay stub for the selected pay period.
- Recalculate the participant's contribution percentage from gross wages on the Annual Payroll Report and confirm it agrees to the elected percentage.
- Apply the IRC annual compensation limit and the age-50+, super, and SIMPLE catch-up limits to confirm contributions do not exceed allowable thresholds.
- Agree pre-tax and Roth contributions per the Annual Payroll Report to amounts on the W-2.
- Confirm the gross wages on the Annual Payroll Report agree to the gross wages on the pay stub for the selected pay date.
- Confirm contributions withheld per the payroll report were deposited per the trust statement and review remittance timing.
Engagement Variables
The plan-specific overviews are set by EBP Plan Analysis. The IRC threshold variables are set during EBP Setup. All are referenced automatically when this procedure runs.
| Engagement Variable | Source | What it provides this procedure |
|---|---|---|
| Compensation Overview | EBP Plan Analysis | The plan's definition of eligible compensation. Used to determine the compensation base for contribution percentage recalculations. |
| Contributions Overview | EBP Plan Analysis | The plan's contribution rules, including match formula and any plan-specific deferral provisions. |
| Annual Compensation Limit (IRC §401(a)(17)) | EBP Setup (IRC Threshold) | The annual compensation cap used to limit eligible compensation in the contribution recalculation. |
| Catch-Up Contribution, Age 50+ (IRC §414(v)(2)(B)(i)) | EBP Setup (IRC Threshold) | Catch-up allowance for participants age 50 or older. |
| Super Catch-Up Contribution, Ages 60–63 (IRC §414(v)(2)(E)) | EBP Setup (IRC Threshold) | Super catch-up allowance for participants ages 60 through 63. |
| SIMPLE Catch-Up Contribution, Age 50+ (IRC §414(v)(2)(B)(ii)) | EBP Setup (IRC Threshold) | Catch-up allowance applied to SIMPLE plans. |
Your selections
| Selection | What to enter | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Employee Name | Full legal name as it appears on plan records. | Drives document matching across the payroll report, W-2, pay stub, election form, and trust statement. |
| Pay Frequency | Bi-Weekly, Semi-Monthly, or Monthly. | Determines how contributions scale on an annualized basis and drives the contribution recalculation. |
| Pay Date Selected | The specific pay date for the period being tested. | The pay date Agentive matches to the trust statement remittance. Use the check or deposit date, not the period end date. |
Documents to provide
| Document | What to provide | Key data extracted |
|---|---|---|
| 401(k) Election Form | The participant's signed deferral election form. | Elected deferral percentages or dollar amounts, election effective date. Used to confirm withheld amounts match the election. |
| Annual Payroll Report | Full-year payroll register for the plan year. | Gross wages, plan-eligible compensation, pre-tax deferrals, Roth deferrals, and employer match. Drives the contribution recalculation and the cross-document tie-outs. |
| W-2 | The participant's annual wage and tax statement. | Box 12 codes D (pre-tax) and AA (Roth). Used to agree pre-tax and Roth contributions per the Annual Payroll Report to the W-2 totals. |
| Pay Stub or Time Card | The individual pay period statement for the selected pay date. | Gross wages and contributions withheld for the selected pay date. Used to agree gross wages on the payroll register to the pay stub, and to confirm elected amounts were withheld. |
| Trust Statement | The trustee or recordkeeper record of contribution deposits received. | Pre-tax, Roth, and employer contributions received and the remittance date. Used to confirm deposits and to support remittance timing review. |
Don't have these exact documents?
Use Co-Audit to change which documents this request asks for, and to adjust the procedures and calculations that read them, so the workflow matches what your client actually provides.
Testing attributes
| Test | What Agentive confirms |
|---|---|
| Agree election to pay stub | Compares the deferral amount on the signed election form to the amount withheld on the pay stub for the selected pay date. |
| Recalculate contribution percentage | Recalculates the participant's effective contribution percentage from the Annual Payroll Report and compares it to the elected percentage. |
| Apply contribution and catch-up limits | Confirms the participant's contributions do not exceed the annual compensation limit or any applicable catch-up limit, using the IRC threshold variables. |
| Agree pre-tax contributions: Payroll Report to W-2 | Compares pre-tax deferrals per the Annual Payroll Report to W-2 Box 12 Code D. |
| Agree Roth contributions: Payroll Report to W-2 | Compares Roth deferrals per the Annual Payroll Report to W-2 Box 12 Code AA. |
| Agree gross wages: Payroll Register to pay stub | Compares the gross wages on the payroll register to the gross wages on the pay stub for the selected pay date. |
| Confirm contributions deposited to trust | Agrees contributions withheld per the payroll report to deposits received per the trust statement for the selected pay date. |
Update with Co-Audit
Real client data rarely matches a template exactly. When the documents you receive, the labels on them, or the way contributions reconcile during review differ from what this template assumes, use Co-Audit to retool the request. Describe what is different and it rewrites the document groups, AI Prompt Columns, and calculations to fit.
Situations where Co-Audit helps with Contribution Testing:
- The payroll system labels contributions differently and Agentive returns zero for a type that should have a value. Tell Co-Audit the exact labels this client uses (for example, pre-tax as
401K PRE-TAX, Roth asROTH EE, match asSH MATCH), then have it update the extraction prompts once so the instruction applies to every participant. - The match formula has a true-up or a per-payroll plus annual reconciliation the standard recalculation does not handle. Have Co-Audit roll the recalculation up by participant and add a true-up reconciliation column.
- The client provides an annual payroll detail report covering every pay period instead of individual pay stubs. Have Co-Audit rebuild the workflow to read that single combined report and recalculate the contribution percentage from it.
- The election is a digital record in the recordkeeper portal rather than a signed PDF. Have Co-Audit adjust the document group and the election-to-pay-stub agreement to read the portal export.
Describe the difference in the Co-Audit panel
For example: "the client uses an annual payroll detail report and a per-payroll match with an annual true-up; update the recalculation to roll up by participant and add a true-up reconciliation column."
Let Co-Audit update the workflow
It revises the document groups, AI Prompt Columns, and calculations.
Review every change
Watch the columns for red text (a broken reference) and re-check any cell that involves math, where the AI tends to copy a number forward instead of recalculating.
For broader detail on tailoring requests and fixing broken column links, see Tailor a request with Co-Audit in the EBP hub.
Continue your journey
← Payrate Testing
Confirm gross pay before testing contributions.
Remittance Testing →
Agree contributions to the trust statement and test remittance timeliness.
How is this guide?
Payrate Testing
Agree timecard hours to the payroll register and recalculate gross pay from the authorized rate in the personnel file.
Remittance Testing
Agree pre-tax, Roth, and employer-match contributions from the trust statement to the payroll register and test remittance timeliness against the plan's standard.