How to sign up for Medicare

Raymond Martinez10 said:How am I supposed to file an electronic pension claim if the employee didn't bring their employment records—which they aren't even required to provide—and I have no way of finding their Social Security number? Furthermore, how am I expected to track down their total years of service for past employment?

The only fix is to tell the worker to show up in person—because around here, sending a proxy just doesn't fly—so they can get their own username and password (assuming they've filled out the request first). Then, either they pull the data themselves or I print out whatever info I need for them.

Is there actually a faster, less painful way to do this? 🤷

Even though those fields still exist in the digital system, you actually don't need to enter the Social Security number to complete the filing on the SSA website. You can just skip over that section entirely.

As for the rest of your question, I completely agree with how we're handling the documentation side of things. It’s like they abolish certain requirements one day, yet the system still demands the exact same data from the employee's files.

I finally managed to get some actual healthcare assistance from someone who actually knows what they're doing today.
They basically scan all your documents and send them off as an attachment via email. You have to sign everything using a digital ID card, and apparently, you can only do it through Microsoft Outlook. They gave me instructions specifically for the 2007 version, but since we’re running 2010, the whole digital signature configuration process is slightly different. After spending a solid hour wrestling with it and digging through help files, I had to call up a buddy of mine who works in IT just to finally get this much-hyped email signing feature working properly.
It really feels like this could have been handled so much more elegantly—something streamlined like our online tax filings or the Social Security administration systems. Instead, it feels like every single department in the government is going to have its own unique way of delivering data and its own set of formats: one office wants a JPG, another demands a PDF, and a third expects you to use a specific web app... it's honestly a total nightmare. But hey, I guess it doesn't matter as long as they drop a new regulation on us by December 30th stating that starting January 1st, we have to submit all our forms or file employee registrations exclusively online.

silverbadger said:I finally managed to get some actual healthcare assistance from someone who actually knows what they're doing today.
They basically scan all your documents and send them off as an attachment via email. You have to sign everything using a digital ID card, and apparently, you can only do it through Microsoft Outlook. They gave me instructions specifically for the 2007 version, but since we’re running 2010, the whole digital signature configuration process is slightly different. After spending a solid hour wrestling with it and digging through help files, I had to call up a buddy of mine who works in IT just to finally get this much-hyped email signing feature working properly.
It really feels like this could have been handled so much more elegantly—something streamlined like our online tax filings or the Social Security administration systems. Instead, it feels like every single department in the government is going to have its own unique way of delivering data and its own set of formats: one office wants a JPG, another demands a PDF, and a third expects you to use a specific web app... it's honestly a total nightmare. But hey, I guess it doesn't matter as long as they drop a new regulation on us by December 30th stating that starting January 1st, we have to submit all our forms or file employee registrations exclusively online.

Oh, come on... 🙂 🙂
Wait, if I understood you correctly, you're saying you need to have 2007 Office installed (which, luckily or unluckily, I actually do right now) just to send them an email through Microsoft?

What if I use Live Mail or Mozilla Thunderbird? Am I forced to have Microsoft just for them?

Or did I get all that mixed up?

Ethan Mitchell4 said:Oh, come on... 🙂 🙂
Wait, if I understood you correctly, you're saying you need to have 2007 Office installed (which, luckily or unluckily, I actually do right now) just to send them an email through Microsoft?

What if I use Live Mail or Mozilla Thunderbird? Am I forced to have Microsoft just for them?

Or did I get all that mixed up?

I think what silverbadger is talking about is a one-time thing—it's just for activating a card with Medicare.

Could use a little 🙈 help here. I’m pretty lost on this whole Social Security thing. We run a small business with 7 employees, so does that mean we have to start filing all the enrollments and terminations electronically starting April 1st?
The part I don't get is,

1) Can I just handle these filings myself, or is that something the accounting firm needs to take over?
2) If I am doing the enrollments/terminations personally, how do I fill out the access form , specifically

A) What goes under "taxpayers"—do I list every single employee?
B) What do I put for "users"—what kind of name searcher is that supposed to be?

Sorry for being so clueless. Believe me, I’ve read the Social Security Administration website a bunch of times already, but I’m still totally confused.

Kate Brown49 said:Could use a little 🙈 help here. I’m pretty lost on this whole Social Security thing. We run a small business with 7 employees, so does that mean we have to start filing all the enrollments and terminations electronically starting April 1st?
The part I don't get is,

1) Can I just handle these filings myself, or is that something the accounting firm needs to take over?
2) If I am doing the enrollments/terminations personally, how do I fill out the access form , specifically

A) What goes under "taxpayers"—do I list every single employee?
B) What do I put for "users"—what kind of name searcher is that supposed to be?

Sorry for being so clueless. Believe me, I’ve read the Social Security Administration website a bunch of times already, but I’m still totally confused.

1. You can do it yourself—it doesn't have to be the accountants,

but, if you want to go solo, you'll need a business credit card—if you don't have one yet, expect an extra cost of about $17/month.

If the accounting firm handles it, I assume they'll charge you for that too.

You just have to weigh which option works better for you.

2. I don't know/don't quite follow the question—the taxpayer is definitely the business owner, not the employees. Beyond that, I'm not sure.

thanks, Kyle Rogers8...
so that access form you have to fill out and bring to the office just to get into the online portal has a few sections:
1. employers
2. users
3. date and location
4. save
5. print
-Under "employers," it lets you enter one and then add more, so I guess maybe that's where you put the registered employees?
-Then under "users," you're supposed to type in a name and hit search, but I honestly have no clue who I'm actually looking for here. If anyone else has dealt with this form, maybe you know what I'm talking about. You can click through those sections on the link above, which might make it slightly clearer.

Anyway, thanks a million for the help.

Kate Brown49 said:thanks, Kyle Rogers8...
so that access form you have to fill out and bring to the office just to get into the online portal has a few sections:
1. employers
2. users
3. date and location
4. save
5. print
-Under "employers," it lets you enter one and then add more, so I guess maybe that's where you put the registered employees?
-Then under "users," you're supposed to type in a name and hit search, but I honestly have no clue who I'm actually looking for here. If anyone else has dealt with this form, maybe you know what I'm talking about. You can click through those sections on the link above, which might make it slightly clearer.

Anyway, thanks a million for the help.

Unless someone who actually filled out the new access form shows up...

I'm thinking the "user" or "users" refers to whoever the corporate card is issued to—it can be multiple people per company, though in my case, it's just me.
That's how it worked on the old access sheet.

Kyle Rogers8 said:Unless someone who actually filled out the new access form shows up...

I'm thinking the "user" or "users" refers to whoever the corporate card is issued to—it can be multiple people per company, though in my case, it's just me.
That's how it worked on the old access sheet.

I was the one filling it out.

The "Obligor Name" field is for the business name. It's not for the employees you're hiring or firing; that's where you register your own company (or LLC) so you have the authority to manage staff later on.

The "User" should be the first and last name of the person whose name is on the card (whether it's that Chase card or whatever you're using for the IRS). Once you enter that, they'll cross-reference the database to find that specific individual.

thanks, guys :clapping:

Kate Brown49 said:Could use a little 🙈 help here. I’m pretty lost on this whole Social Security thing. We run a small business with 7 employees, so does that mean we have to start filing all the enrollments and terminations electronically starting April 1st?
The part I don't get is,

1) Can I just handle these filings myself, or is that something the accounting firm needs to take over?
2) If I am doing the enrollments/terminations personally, how do I fill out the access form , specifically

A) What goes under "taxpayers"—do I list every single employee?
B) What do I put for "users"—what kind of name searcher is that supposed to be?

Sorry for being so clueless. Believe me, I’ve read the Social Security Administration website a bunch of times already, but I’m still totally confused.

What exactly are you paying an accountant for? If only they would just handle all this stuff for me automatically. 😁

Your accountant probably already has all the necessary certifications, so handling this should be a breeze for them. I'm talking about things like filling out those access lists and all that technical paperwork.

Ugh, don't even get me started on bookkeeping. I could write novels about this stuff. 🙂😠
The boss is stubborn as hell and hates change, but our bookkeeper? Seriously, you guys, if you look her up on Wikipedia, she’d be listed under "incompetent."
The woman doesn't even have internet, an email address, or a fax machine!
Now we’re looking at a potential audit because she failed to file the IRS forms... all thanks to her and the fact that we were too naive to double-check her work. 🙂
I finally managed to talk my employer into switching accounting firms, but having an online system for registering employees would be such a lifesaver. Our line of work means sometimes we need someone behind the wheel on a Saturday night, and since there's a 24-hour filing window, we end up having to register people on Sundays or holidays too...
Is it possible to fill out an authorization form and give power of attorney to the new firm so they handle the filings, while still leaving the option for us to do it ourselves when needed? Or does the authorization only allow one entity to handle onboarding and offboarding?
So, the taxpayer name is just the business name.
I'm still a bit confused about the username field, though. 🤔 Would that be the business owner? Or what?

In my view, you have to distinguish between the taxpayer—which would be the corporation or the LLC—and the actual user, who is the individual holding the digital certificate.
In my own situation, the certificate is technically issued to the CEO or the owner, but obviously, I’m the one actually using it and managing the PIN since I’m the one filing the electronic forms.

Has anyone else been filing employee paperwork through Medicare lately instead of using the online portal? Like, actually physically walking into an office...

Jack Young said:Has anyone else been filing employee paperwork through Medicare lately instead of using the online portal? Like, actually physically walking into an office...

Yeah, I think they still handle both onboarding and offboarding. It seems pretty standard. There's supposed to be a three-month grace period, I guess.

Exactly, I saw the same thing on the Social Security website regarding the transition period ending on April 1st, 2014. But then there’s that whole bit about the registration and deregistration window being just 24 hours starting from January 1st, 2014. Makes you wonder why they can't just make these things straightforward, doesn't it?

Sign up or opt out within a 24-hour window. Some lady at the Social Security office told me it’s basically impossible for her.

stormyhound3 said:Yeah, I think they still handle both onboarding and offboarding. It seems pretty standard. There's supposed to be a three-month grace period, I guess.

Yeah, I get the part about the grace period, but what specific forms are we talking about? Are they the same ones used through December 31st, or something else?

We filed using those same forms earlier this year. A colleague of mine brought his copies along and mentioned everything went smoothly without any issues.

Can someone who’s actually been through this nightmare walk me through the exact process for registering with the IRS and Medicare...

- I already registered with the IRS and set up a quick filing profile for my firm, which went fine enough
- I filled out the IRS authorization forms for my clients and added myself as the authorized representative for them...
- I also filled out the Medicare authorization forms and listed myself as the one handling things for them

Questions:
1. On an IRS authorization form, can I list, say, five different clients and then name myself as the person managing all of them, or am I stuck filling out a separate form for every single client?

2. Who actually signs the IRS authorization? Is it the client, the accounting firm, or both?

3. Besides the authorization form, what else needs to be brought to the IRS? Some guy on a toll-free help line told me the form was all I needed, but now I'm reading online about powers of attorney, tax IDs, official rulings, and other nonsense...

4. What do I put for the business tax ID number on the Medicare authorization form? I can't find it anywhere... Is it something like 58222.1.1 ???

5. What else does Medicare require along with the authorization form?

Now, regarding hiring and firing employees...
1. What documentation is required for reporting to the IRS, and how exactly is it submitted?
2. What documentation is required for reporting to Medicare, and what's the protocol there?

If some kind soul could clear this up for me, I'd appreciate it...😁