Mercury’s affiliate, Central Benefits and Insurance Services LLC, can help you set up health, retirement, and insurance benefits for your team, with the deductions handled automatically in payroll.
This article covers what's available, how setting benefits up works, and when coverage can start.
What's available
- Health — medical, dental, and vision
- Life and disability
- Workers' compensation (via Next Insurance)*
- 401(k) (via Human Interest and Vestwell)**
Benefits are available to your employees. Contractors aren't eligible.
How setting up benefits works
Setting up benefits starts with a conversation rather than a form. You can start it from the Benefits tab in payroll.
- Book a call. You'll talk to a benefits specialist about what you're looking for and what your team needs
- Choose your plans. We'll quote plans based on your team and your coverage preferences, and you'll pick what to offer. Most companies decide on the call
- Set your contributions. You decide how much of the premium your company covers, for employees and for their dependents
- We handle the paperwork. We build your enrollment, submit it to the carrier, and follow up if the carrier needs anything else
- Your team enrolls online. We'll let you know if anyone hasn't completed their elections
You can start setting up benefits alongside payroll, but setup and activation timelines vary by benefit.
When coverage can start
Two things have to happen before coverage begins:
- Your first payroll has to run successfully. This is a carrier requirement, not a Mercury one
- Your plan choices and contributions have to be final
For coverage to start on the first of next month, both need to be done by the 15th of this month. If either slips, your start date moves to the following month.
After that, your plans still go through carrier approval, which can take up to two weeks to show up as active coverage.
Note: Additional restrictions may apply based on the state and insurance company.
401(k)
Mercury offers 401(k) plans through Human Interest and Vestwell. New plans are set up with Human Interest; if you already have a Vestwell plan, you can connect that instead.
When you're ready, we'll connect you with the provider's team to set up your plan. Once it's connected to payroll, everything runs automatically:
- Your team enrols and chooses their contributions with the provider
- Contributions come out of each paycheck and appear on your team's pay statements
- The provider tracks annual contribution limits
Your team manages their enrolment and contribution amounts with the provider rather than in Mercury, and changes they make there flow through to your next pay run.
Mercury doesn't hold or move your 401(k) money. The provider debits your account for contributions separately, after payroll. If you change bank accounts, you'll need to update your account details directly with your 401(k) provider. Mercury can't make these changes for you.
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation is required by law in almost every state as soon as you have an employee, and we can set up a policy for you if you'd like.
Because premiums are calculated using payroll information, this can help reduce differences between estimated and actual premiums
Your insurer bills you for the premium directly. It isn't part of your payroll debit.
Workers' compensation isn't available for companies that only pay contractors.
How benefits appear in payroll
Benefit deductions come out of each paycheck automatically and show up on your team's pay statements.
On a pay run, benefit contributions are listed separately from the amount Mercury debits, because the providers collect those themselves before or after payroll runs (typically on a monthly basis). They're part of your total payroll cost, but they aren't part of the Mercury debit.
Where to get help
- Plan, coverage, and claims questions go to your benefits provider or carrier
- Questions about deductions or how benefits appear in payroll go to Mercury specialized support
Mercury Payroll helps businesses manage payroll and related administrative tasks. Mercury does not provide legal, tax, accounting, or investment advice and does not act as your employer, professional employer organization (PEO), employer of record (EOR), or plan fiduciary. You remain responsible for your legal and regulatory obligations, including worker classification, wage-and-hour requirements, tax withholding and reporting, and benefits eligibility.
*Workers' compensation insurance is provided by NEXT Insurance and subject to NEXT's eligibility requirements, terms, conditions, and coverage decisions. NEXT is not affiliated with Mercury or Central except as a service provider.
**401(k) services are provided by Human Interest and subject to Human Interest's applicable terms, eligibility requirements, and plan documents. Human Interest is not affiliated with Mercury or Central except as a service provider.