Program Letter 2012-05 BA-11 on ERS

United States
Railroad Retirement Board
Office of Programs

Program
Letter

Quality Reporting Service Center
E-MAIL: [email protected]
Letter No. 2012-05

Phone: (312) 751-4992
Fax: (312) 751-7190
Date: October 2011
[Revised April 2012]

TO:

Certification Contact Officials

SUBJECT:

Electronic Version of Forms BA-3 and BA-11 Available on the
Employer Reporting System (ERSNet)

Please share this information with the appropriate members of your staff who file service and
compensation reporting forms for employees of your organization.
The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) has updated the services available on the ERSNet system
to now include Forms BA-3, Annual Report of Creditable Compensation, and BA-11, Report of
Gross Earnings. Effective February 6, 2012, these forms can be filed via the Internet. These
additions to our ERSNet services provides you with a secure, convenient and efficient way to
submit the annual service and compensation reports that are due to the RRB no later than the
last day of February.
These new additions join the forms already on the system:
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Form BA-3, Annual Report of Creditable Compensation (New)
Form BA-4, Report of Creditable Compensation Adjustments
Form BA-6a, BA-6 Address Report
Form BA-11, Report of Gross Earnings (New)
Form GL-129a, Record of Employer Determination on Employee Protest
Form ID-4E, Notice of RUIA Claim Determinations
Form ID-4K, Prepayment Notice of Employee’s Applications and Claims for
Benefits under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA)

Annual Reporting Forms
Form BA-3, Annual Report of Creditable Compensation, is used to report service and
compensation for each calendar year. The information provided is added to the employee’s
lifetime earnings and service records from which benefit eligibility and payments are
determined.
Form BA-11, Gross Earnings Report, is used to obtain the actual gross earnings of a sample
group of covered employees whose social security numbers end with the digits “30.” The data
collected and the gross earnings are used to estimate future tax income and to compute taxes
owed for the financial interchange between the Railroad Retirement and Social Security/

Medicare programs. Gross earnings amounts consist of all earnings taxable under the hospital
insurance portion of the Tier I tax rate. This includes earnings above the taxable limit, sick pay
and miscellaneous compensation.
If you have no compensated employees to report or no employees whose social security number
ends with the digits “30” for the prior calendar year, you will now be able to submit a zero report
through ERSNet without using the From G-440, Report Specifications Sheet.
Verifying Receipt of Your Report
You will receive an automated email receipt from the ERSNet system confirming that we have
received your report. The receipt will list the name of the report(s) and additional data that you
can use to verify your report was correctly submitted.
Access Levels on the ERSNet Site
Access to ERSNet is role-based, which means that each user's access is tailored to the role or
work they do at their company. Access levels are assigned by the company, allowing employers
to retain control over the forms their employees can view and submit. If you are not enrolled and
want to begin filing your reports on ERSNet follow the instructions below. An Explanation of
Access Levels is enclosed.
Applying for Access
To apply for access do the following:
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Read the enclosed Security Guidelines, which explain your responsibilities as a user of
ERSNet. They are also available at http://www.rrb.gov/AandT/ERI/Part8/chapter8.asp.

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File the enclosed Form BA-12, Application for Employer Reporting Internet Access.
Complete Sections A, B, and C, then have the designated employee sign Item 5 in
Section B and return the form to you. The certification in Section D must be completed
by an official of the company who has authority to sign official RRB forms. If you have
signature authority, sign the certification. Otherwise, the company president and those
persons designated on the Form G-117A, Designation of Contact Official, are assumed to
have signature authority. For additional copies of Form BA-12 or information on how to
complete it, go directly to http://www.rrb.gov/pdf/AandT/ba12.pdf or contact the Quality
Reporting Service Center at the telephone number or e-mail address shown above. All
employer forms can be accessed on the RRB website at www.rrb.gov.

Within three to five days of receipt of an acceptable application, the RRB will mail your user ID
and password along with instructions for accessing the site. To deter fraudulent use of ERSNet,
the Form BA-12 cannot be completed or filed on our website; original signatures (no
reproductions) are needed and it must be transmitted by US or express mail carrier. For security
reasons, facsimiles are not acceptable.

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Detailed instructions on how to use the system are covered in Part VIII of the Reporting
Instructions to Employers. See below for direct links to the reporting instructions on our
website.
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Rail reporting instructions http://www.rrb.gov/AandT/ERI/Part8/chapter1.asp
Labor reporting instructions http://www.rrb.gov/AandT/LRI/Part8/chapter1.asp

Enclosures:
Form BA-12
Security Guidelines
Explanation of Access Levels

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