Automate payroll reconciliation — Form 941, W-2, FICA & FUTA
Payroll reconciliation means verifying that every payroll run — gross wages, FICA withholdings, federal and state tax deposits, and net disbursements — ties to your Form 941 quarterly filings, year-end W-2 totals, and general ledger. Catching discrepancies early prevents IRS notices and amended returns. Rima automates the entire process. Send your payroll register, tax filings, and GL export via Slack or email and get back a completed, audit-ready reconciliation in Excel within 3 hours.
How it works
01
Send your payroll register, tax filings, and GL export
Drop your payroll register export (ADP, Paychex, Gusto, or other), your Form 941 or year-end W-2 summary, and your GL payroll expense entries into your Rima Slack channel or email them directly.
02
Rima reconciles payroll to 941, W-2, FICA, and GL
Rima cross-references gross wages, federal and state tax withholdings, FICA and FUTA contributions, and net disbursements — matching payroll register totals to your 941 filings, W-2 figures, and GL journal entries. Discrepancies are surfaced with full context.
03
Review your completed payroll reconciliation in Excel
Rima delivers the finished reconciliation in your Excel template — matched items, exceptions flagged by type (FICA variance, 941 mismatch, W-2 discrepancy), and a full audit trail — ready for sign-off.
What Rima handles
Every aspect of payroll reconciliation, automated
Form 941 quarterly reconciliation
Reconcile quarterly payroll register totals — gross wages, federal income tax withheld, Social Security and Medicare wages — against Form 941 line items. Flag discrepancies before the filing deadline.
W-2 year-end reconciliation
Verify year-end payroll totals against W-2 Box 1, Box 3, Box 5, and Box 16 figures across all employees before Forms W-2 are issued to employees and filed with the SSA.
FICA withholding reconciliation
Confirm employee and employer Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) contributions are correctly calculated, withheld, and deposited for each payroll run.
FUTA deposit reconciliation
Reconcile federal unemployment tax (FUTA) deposits against payroll register data — confirming deposit amounts match the liability and flagging any shortfall ahead of Form 940 filing.
Payroll register to bank matching
Match net pay disbursements in your ADP, Paychex, or Gusto payroll register against bank ACH payment records — confirming every employee payment cleared correctly.
GL payroll entry reconciliation
Verify payroll journal entries in your GL — wages expense, payroll tax expense, FICA payable, federal withholding payable — against payroll register totals and tax deposit records.
What you get
Fully managed. Always audit-ready.
3-hour SLA
Every payroll reconciliation — monthly, quarterly 941, or year-end W-2 — completed within 3 hours, 24/7.
IRS-ready audit trail
Every figure is traced to its source — payroll register, 941, W-2, or GL — ready for IRS inquiry.
Your Excel template
Results land in your existing reconciliation template — no reformatting required.
Works with any payroll system
ADP, Paychex, Gusto, Rippling, Paylocity — Rima works with exports from any platform.
FAQ
Common questions about payroll reconciliation automation
What is payroll reconciliation and why is it important for US businesses?
Payroll reconciliation is the process of verifying that payroll runs match bank disbursements, general ledger entries, and tax filings. For US businesses, this includes reconciling gross wages to Form 941 quarterly payroll tax returns, confirming FICA (Social Security and Medicare) withholdings are correctly calculated and remitted, matching W-2 totals at year-end, and ensuring FUTA (federal unemployment tax) deposits align with the payroll register. Errors caught here prevent IRS notices, penalties, and amended returns.
Can Rima reconcile payroll to Form 941 quarterly returns?
Yes. Rima reconciles your quarterly payroll register totals — gross wages, federal income tax withheld, Social Security wages, Medicare wages, and employer FICA contributions — against the figures reported on Form 941. Discrepancies are flagged with full line-by-line detail so your payroll team can identify and correct issues before the 941 deadline.
Does Rima support W-2 year-end reconciliation?
Yes. Rima reconciles year-end payroll register totals against W-2 Box 1 (wages), Box 3 (Social Security wages), Box 5 (Medicare wages), and Box 16 (state wages) figures — catching any discrepancies between what was paid, what was withheld, and what will be reported to employees and the IRS on W-2s before year-end close.
Does Rima reconcile FICA and FUTA tax deposits?
Yes. Rima reconciles employee and employer FICA contributions (6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare each) and FUTA deposits against payroll register data. It confirms that tax deposit amounts match the liability calculated from each payroll run and flags any shortfalls or overpayments.
What payroll systems does Rima work with?
Rima works with exports from any US payroll system — ADP Workforce Now, ADP Run, Paychex Flex, Gusto, Rippling, QuickBooks Payroll, Paylocity, Paycom, and others. You send the payroll register export file and Rima handles the reconciliation.
How long does payroll reconciliation take with Rima?
Rima completes every payroll reconciliation within a 3-hour SLA, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week — including quarterly 941 reconciliations and year-end W-2 reviews.
Outside the US?
Rima supports payroll reconciliation for non-US jurisdictions — UK PAYE, Australian STP, Canadian payroll deductions, and others. Get in touch to discuss your requirements.
Part of Reconciliation
Payroll reconciliation is one of many reconciliation types Rima automates.
Ready to automate your payroll reconciliation?
Send your payroll register and tax filings to Rima and get back a completed reconciliation — 941, W-2, FICA, and FUTA — in your Excel template.