Your Employer Tips

North Dakota Public Employees Retirement System sent this bulletin at 02/05/2025 10:32 AM EST

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Employer Tips

IRS Clarification on Return-to-Work (RTW)

NDPERS received clarification that employers should consider when hiring return-to-work retirees. Lack of awareness could result in a 10% early withdrawal IRS penalty on pension benefits for the return-to-work retiree. This can easily be prevented by adhering to a 31-day separation from employment.

Learn how to prevent the 10% early withdrawal penalty that could impact any return-to-work retirees by reading, saving, and sharing this essential information with your payroll and HR personnel right away.

Prevent 10% Penalty for RTW retirees

Employer Wellness Program Deadline

Employers enrolling in the Employer Based Wellness Program for the [July 1, 2025 - June 30, 2026] wellness plan year must submit their applications by February 28, 2025.

Apply for a 1% health insurance premium discount. To be eligible, your organization must submit a Wellness Program Discount application SFN 58436. You will be notified in April if your discount application is approved or denied.
Apply for wellness funding. Submit a Wellness Program Funding application SFN 58361 to apply for funds to help organizations implement wellness initiatives. NDPERS will contact you in June regarding the status of your application.

Financial Reporting Requirements

The information your organization needs from NDPERS to prepare its financial statements is available on our Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) page.

View GASB Reports

Legislative Update

Interested in what bills NDPERS is following? Check out the Legislative Update on the NDPERS website to view the list and the NDPERS Board position for each of the listed bills.

Mandated ACA Notice of Coverage

Employers must distribute the Notice of Coverage to new, permanent and temporary employees within the first two weeks of employment, as required by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Download Notice of Coverage

Political Subdivisions enrolled in NDPERS Health Insurance

Political subdivisions must meet minimum participation and premium contribution requirements to remain eligible to participate in the NDPERS Health Insurance plans. Read through the Minimum Contribution & Participation Requirements to ensure your organization remains compliant with the ACA parameters.

Monitor your Organization's Eligibility

Processing Final Paycheck

When processing the last paycheck for an employee who is retiring or separating from employment, remember that final wages must be paid and reported to NDPERS according to the employer’s regular pay period schedule.

This means final wages cannot be paid and reported early or outside the regular pay cycle.

Reporting Eligible Contributions to NDPERS

When reporting wages, on behalf of your employees participating in the NDPERS retirement system, your organization must be consistent. Otherwise, your employee's retirement benefit could be impacted.

Keep in mind that not all earned wages are eligible to be reported to NDPERS as retirement contributions. Reference the Best Reporting Practices.