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Electronic Payment Options for Employers

Frequently Asked Questions About EFT ACH Debit Payments

What is Electronic Funds Transfer or EFT?

Electronic Funds Transfer, often called EFT, is a payment method that replaces sending a paper check. You simply transfer funds from your financial institution to ours for credit to your Unemployment Insurance (UI) account. You no longer have to worry about whether your payment made it through the mail on time.

What information do I have to provide to in order to use EFT on the Internet?

Registration for EFT Internet is a simple one-time process. In order to have your funds taken electronically from your account you will have to provide us with the following bank account information; your bank account number, your bank routing number, and type of bank account. (Savings or Checking)

When can I start making EFT Internet payments?

Once you have completed the EFT Internet registration you can immediately start to make payments.

Will UI ever initiate an EFT Internet payment without my approval?

No, EFT Internet payments occur only when you make an EFT Internet payment entry on our EFT vendors secure Internet Site and only for the amount and on the day that you instruct the payment to be made.

What if I change financial institutions or want to add additional bank accounts to my registration?

You can select the option to edit your EFT Registration and change it. If you pay your taxes out of more than one bank account you can also add additional accounts. Once you have updated your registration you can immediately make your EFT Internet payment out of your account.

I changed my EFT bank account registration for UI when I was using the Department of Revenue (DOR) EFT Payment site but the UI registration I see on the QTWRS site did not get changed. Why is that?

The UI EFT registration on the DOR EFT Payment site is a separate EFT registration from the UI EFT registration on the QTWRS tax report-filing Site. The EFT registrations are maintained by an outside vendor that we contract with and at this time the cost is too prohibitive too UI to have one common UI EFT bank registration at both sites. If you make a change to your UI EFT bank account registration you should change both UI registrations if you are registered for UI at both sites. Failure to do so will probably result in your payment not being honored by the bank. UI prefers that you file your report electronically using QTWRS and then pay your taxes electronically using the EFT registration on this site.

Is My EFT Internet Bank Information Secure?

Yes, Our EFT vendor uses SSL 128-bit data encryption. Access to your EFT Internet bank account information is limited to only a few employees. We feel your EFT Internet bank information is more secure than a paper check, which can pass through many hands.

I am making a payment on or before the tax due date but the earliest possible settlement date of payment is a business day after the tax due date. Will my payment be considered timely or late?

Any EFT payment made by midnight on the tax due date will be treated as received on time if the user accepts the default settlement date of payment even though the settlement date listed is after the tax due date.

Can I cancel an EFT payment that I previously made when filing my report online using QTWRS?

No you can not cancel a payment at this time. Once a payment confirmation number has been issued the payment can not be canceled. The only way to stop an EFT payment made on QTWRS is to have your financial institution place an EFT return code 031 on the payment. Please make sure your payment data is correct when reviewing the payment verification screen prior to completing your payment. Please remember any time that you click the complete my payment button from the payment verification page you are creating a new electronic payment transaction that will process against your bank account.

Can I cancel an EFT payment that I previously made using the DOR EFT Payment System?

Yes you may cancel a payment if you cancel the payment by 4:00 p.m. 1-day prior to the settlement date of your payment. Log back into the payment system with your EFT ID and password and select the cancel payment option. You will need to have the confirmation number of the payment you wish to cancel. If the system does not allow you to cancel the payment your only recourse is to have your financial institution place an EFT return code 031 on the payment. Please make sure your payment data is correct when reviewing the payment verification screen prior to saving your payment. Please remember any time that you click the Save button from the payment verification page you are creating a new electronic payment transaction that will process against your bank account.

Can I pay delinquent taxes via EFT?

Yes we recommend you use the DOR EFT Payment System to make your delinquent UI payments. You can schedule multiple payments to come out of your bank account on different settlement days. You will have to initiate a payment for each installment payment that you would like to make but it can all be done at one time on the Internet or by IVR (telephone). Simply pick the option to initiate a payment and then select the day you would like the payment to be settled from your bank account. Repeat this process for each payment you would like to make. You will be issued a payment confirmation number for each payment made.

Why pay by EFT instead of check?

You may make your EFT Internet payment up to 45 business days in the future when using the QTWRS payment system and up to 1 year if using the DOR Payment System. Making your payment now allows you to make your payment in advance but not have the funds taken out of your account until the actual tax due date. Making your payment by EFT insures that the UI will receive the money on the day you specify when making your payment. You save money on postage and don't have to worry about the payment getting lost in the mail and incurring penalties. Remember that making an EFT payment with a future settlement date of payment does not relieve you of meeting your tax liability due date. Payments made after the tax due date will result in interest being assessed on the tax due and could effect your next years UI Tax Rate.

Updated November 15, 2004
Division of Unemployment Insurance
Content Contact: Tax and Accounting Staff