Employee Sync FAQs

What is employee sync?

Employee sync is the process that sends employee information from an integrated payroll provider to Betterment at Work. The information can be used to create or update employee records and support plan administration.

If your payroll provider is not integrated with Betterment, employees must be added through the manual process available for your plan.

How do I add a new employee to an integrated plan?

Add or update the employee in your payroll or HR system first. Betterment receives employee information through the payroll integration and then processes the update.

If Betterment identifies a data issue, review the employee in the Plan Sponsor Dashboard and correct any requested information. Depending on the payroll provider, you may need to correct the information in the payroll system before it can sync successfully.

How long does employee sync take?

The timing depends on your payroll provider. Some providers send updates more frequently than others, and file-based integrations may follow a scheduled file process.

After you make a change in your payroll system, allow time for the next scheduled sync. If the employee still does not appear or the information is not updated after the expected sync window, contact Plan Support.

How do I update an employee’s employment status?

For an integrated plan, update the employee’s status in your payroll system. Betterment will receive the change through the integration.

If the change does not appear after the next sync, check whether the employee has a sync error or needs review in the Plan Sponsor Dashboard. If you still need help, contact Plan Support.

What should I do if an employee is not syncing?

First, confirm that the employee’s information is accurate in your payroll system. Common causes of a sync issue include missing or conflicting information, an invalid value, a missing employment type, or an employee record that does not match an existing record in Betterment.

Then:

• Correct the information in your payroll system when the error points to payroll data.
• Review the employee in the Plan Sponsor Dashboard and complete any requested review step.
• Allow time for the next sync.
• Contact Plan Support if the employee still does not sync. Include the payroll provider, the error message, the employee’s name, and when the correction was made. Do not include sensitive information unless Support specifically requests it through an approved secure process.

I manually added an employee. How do I turn sync on for that employee?

If your plan is integrated with a payroll provider, employee updates generally need to come from that payroll integration. A manually added employee may require an account-linking or sync review before future updates can flow correctly.

If the employee was manually added and is not syncing, contact Plan Support. We can review the employee record and determine the next step. Do not create a second employee record unless Support instructs you to do so.