Employee Express Frequently Asked Questions

The matrix below explains the actions that can be completed through Employee Express (EEX).

NOTE: Effective dates of transactions are dependent upon the time frame the actions were initiated. Please refer to the Payroll Topics section on this site for information on How to Interpret Effective Dates of Employee Express Transactions.

Payroll/Personnel

Miscellaneous

If you are a new employee, your personnel action is completed by your Servicing Personnel Office (SPO). The following day, Employee Express issues a welcome letter. If a work email address is entered at the time the action is completed, the welcome letter is sent to the work email address. If the work email address field is left blank, the welcome letter is sent by postal mail (note: employees will receive the letter within 2-4 weeks, depending on when the personnel action is completed in in the Federal Personnel and Payroll System (FPPS). The welcome letter contains a security code and a link that the employee can click on or enter in their web browser. Once in the link, the employee is asked to enter the 12-digit security code from the welcome letter, and additional identifying information. The security code is valid for 30 days from the date on the welcome letter.

Welcome letters can only be sent to a government email address. In addition, if the welcome letter is undeliverable, Employee Express does not automatically resend the security code. In this case, the employee will need to click “Submit Help Request” on the Employee Express website to request a new security code.

Existing Employee Express users will have their account deactivated if they do not log into their account within 60 days of their last login. If a user’s account has been deactivated, the user will need to click on “Submit Help Request” in the top right-hand corner of the Employee Express website to request a security code.

• You will see a Pending message for your transaction on the Home page.
• A transaction file is sent from EEX to FPPS around 5:00 am (Eastern Time), Monday through Friday. It is processed in FPPS that night at 8:00 pm (Eastern Time).
• FPPS sends a new Master File to EEX that same night where it is loaded during the night and can be viewed by the employee in the morning. A change made in EEX on Monday can be seen in EEX on Wednesday.

FEHB Change:

• When changing carriers during open season, there is no option of entering a primary care physician.
• EEX does not require Primary Care (PCP) information. Some carriers send a form asking employees to select a PCP, otherwise employee must make arrangements with carrier.
• If Health Benefit card does not have PCP, some carriers treat the visit as specialist and co- payment is higher.

  FEHB Delete in Open Season:

  Employee makes a change and wants to delete it:

• If the employee meant to choose a different FEHB plan, they can go in and override the existing transaction and enter another change or go back to their initial FEHB Plan.

Employee made a change in EEX but does not see updated info when he/she later goes to their web site:

• An FEHB transaction made during Open Season will not be Effective until the first day of the first pay period of the new year. After that date, the employee will see the new plan in EEX.
• An FEHB QLE transaction is Effective the first day of the following pay period. After that date, the employee will see the new plan in EEX.

Human Resource initiation/changes only:

• Marriage
• Legal Separation
• Divorce
• Spouse or Dependent Dies
• Last dependent child loses coverage
• Move or employed outside area covered by HMO
• FEHB plan discontinued
• All initial enrollments must be made through benefits/HR office.
• Birth or adoption must go through the agencies Human Resource office. Timing of FEHB Changes in EEX:
• All FEHB transactions saved on Employee Express are provided to FEHB Carrier via the FEHB Data-Hub processes once a week.
• For example,actions saved basically from Friday through the following Thursday are provided to FEHB Carriers on Sunday afternoon. FEHB Carriers then pull the data from Macon’s server.
• For Example. Transactions saved on EEX on June 9th through June 16th will be imported into the FEHB Data-Hub database on June 17th Carrier files are created on Sunday afternoon. FEHB Carriers will pull their data files on this Sunday, Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.

A Health Savings allotment (HSA) is a pre-tax deduction available to employees who have High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP), also known as Consumer Driven Plans, and who have established a health savings account at a financial institution. There are no edits in either FPPS or EEX for high deductible FEHB. Check Leave & Earning Statement (LES) to verify you have selected a high option Health Benefits prior to selecting HSA. Health Savings Allotments can be confused with Flexible Spending Accounts for more information select “Benefits” on the Payroll Topics section.

TSP and ROTH are effective the pay period AFTER they are entered. They are automatically dated for the next pay period.

For these actions, employees can enter a future effective date up to 90 days.

Address changes made in FPPS or EEX, do flow to TSP for most employees.

Address is sent to TSP when money is sent, so FERS employees are covered, even if they don't contribute because of the 1% basic. CSRS employees who have contributed to TSP, but no longer do, will not have their address sent. They will have to contact Benefits Processing Branch to have the address change processed.

ONLY those employees who have a check going to a postal address may change the address.

Employees who have EFT cannot change to have checks mailed to a postal address.

A transaction file is sent to FPPS around 5:00am (Eastern Time) from the prior day’s input, Monday through Friday. It is loaded into FPPS that night, updated and returned to EEX where it is loaded overnight and can be viewed by the employee. A change in EEX on Monday can be seen in EEX on Wednesday.

If you want state tax withholdings to be different from your Federal tax withholdings, and your resident state does not have a state tax form equivalent to the W-4, you must complete two W- 4 forms. Please label the top of the W-4 that you wish to be used for state taxes, "State Tax” and submit it to your HR assistant.

If you want state tax withheld from your resident state, and that state has a state tax form equivalent to the W-4, please submit that form to your servicing HR assistant.

It is your responsibility to complete either a second W-4 form or your resident state tax form, and submit it to your servicing HR assistant before the end of the first pay period if you want your state tax withholdings to be different from your Federal withholdings. If you’re not sure whether your resident state has a state tax form or whether a reciprocal agreement exists, please contact your HR assistant, and he or she can send you a state tax link.

Employees are not allowed to claim exempt from state taxes via EEX. They should be submitting a signed form to their HR or payroll liaison offices to make these changes. Maximum exemptions are different per state. This information is sent Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

For states that have personal exemptions (e.g. GA), FPPS adds both together and sends to EEX. Hard copy LES picks up only the regular exemptions.

Puerto Rico (PR) taxes cannot be updated in EEX. PR website contains a statement that employees should be exempt from federal tax if paying to PR. FPPS does not make this change systematically and POD does not make changes to fed tax without specific authorization - not from a state tax change. Changes to federal tax would have to be made by HR or payroll liaisons.

Upon separation, employees' information is sent to EEX for 56 days in a View Only capacity.

When the separation action is completed, the MAIL-LES-IND and W2-MAIL-IND are set to 'Y (Yes) mail'.

If an employee transfers within the same agency, he will continue to use the same Login ID and Password.

If an employee separates and is rehired within the same agency within 30 days, he can continue logging in with his old Login ID and Password.

If an employee separates and is rehired with a different agency within 30 days, they will continue to log in to EEX with their existing Login ID and Password. They will see a drop down menu when they log in that will contain the old agency and the new agency. They will only be able to view the old agency for a period of time and then it will be removed from the drop down box.

If an employee separates and is rehired after 30 days, he will receive a new Security Code letter to create a new Login ID and Password.

If the agency the employee transferred from did not utilized EEX, when the action to bring them on board is complete, then the employee will be sent a Security Code from EEX.

If the agency the employee transferred from did utilize EEX, when the action to bring them on board is complete, then the employee will not be sent a Security Code from EEX.

• The employee will continue to log in to EEX with their existing Login ID and Password.
• They will see a drop down menu when they log in that will contain the old agency and the new agency.
• They will only be able to view the old agency for a period of time and then it will be removed from the drop down box.

W-2 information is currently available for 5 years in EEX, after that period they are purged. If a W-2 Statement is needed, but no longer display in EEX, then contact the Customer Support Center.

The most recent W-2 will display. Below the W-2 are buttons for print, pdf, etc. Click on the drop down box to select the year W-2 or W-2C you wish to view. W-2Cs will have a column that displays the old info and a column with the changed info.

SSN changes will not be available in EEX, they will not be able to connect to proper employee.

W-2C is still mailed if W-2 mail is turned off, but W-2 will not.

• If the W-2 was input manually by POD.
• If the W-2C was correcting an SSN.
• If a prior W-2C (same yr) was processed for the employee and it is inaccessible in EEX.
• Employee is no longer active.

Financial Allotments:

• No option to choose anything other than bi-weekly
• Allotment must be in whole dollars Discretionary Allotments:
• Employee are only allowed 4 Discretionary allotments.
• These allotment does not have to be in whole dollars

Beginning 3 pay periods prior to expiration of Comp Time, Travel Comp Time and Time Off Award expiring, LES lists number of hours and pay period leave expires.

LES are kept for 3 years. Files are purged at random intervals so more than 3 years may be available. If LES Statements are needed, but no longer display in EEX, then contact the Customer Support Center.

When a new employee comes on board, the LES indicator is automatically set to “y” (Yes) mail.

HR should immediately go back into command ADCG and future date an action (1 or 2 pay periods), and change the indicator to “N” (No) mail according to the agency policy. This allows time for the employee to receive their Security Code from Employee Express to start viewing their LES online. When employees separate, MAIL-LES-IND is set to 'Y', so LES are mailed. Copies may also be obtained from POD help desk

Agency may choose to be put on a Table in FPPS, which would automatically turn the LES

indicator to “N” as a specified number of pay periods. Even if the agency chooses to have LES ON/OFF function in EEX, if that agency has chosen to be on the TABLE in FPPS with the automated shutdown of LES. No matter what the employees chooses in EEX our system will trump that action and leave the mail LES "NO"

A mass change request can be sent to the Customer Support Center to change all agency or bureau employees to N. It will not change anyone who has an LES indicator = 'W' (waive). W is for those without access to electronic means of retrieving LES.

Agencies should review periodically.

Use 'View as PDF' to print LES. It eliminates problems. If using 'Printable Version', margins can be changed to .25 to eliminate side being cut off, but two pages will be produced if employee has many types of leave or additional messages.

All employees are directed to input their emergency contact information into Employee Express following these steps:

1. Log in to Employee Express at: https://www.employeeexpress.gov/
2. Under the “Miscellaneous” section, select “Emergency Contact Information”
3. Enter the information in all screens that are applicable
4. Select the “Save” button
5. Confirm your answers
6. Select the “Confirm” button
7. Once you have input your information into Employee Express, it is very important that you remember to update the information periodically, as needed.

In the event that any IBC work site becomes inaccessible due to an emergency situation, IBC management officials must have ready access to employees’ emergency contact information. Such access is imperative for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to, notifying employees of emergencies that may prohibit them from reporting to work or informing family members or loved ones of employees who are at the site while an emergency has occurred.

Federal Employee Benefits Statement are available on Employee Express

FEBS provides:

1. Employees with immediate access to their benefits information.
2. Employees with a general overview of their benefits in an easy to read format.
3. Employees to obtain general retirement information which they can then compare against a more comprehensive report from their HR Offices.

If you have Military Service, a deposit may be required for retirement eligibility and annuity computation.

• Employee should verify this information: It is the basis for many of the calculations in this statement. If you believe that it is incorrect, please contact the servicing benefits specialist in your HR Offices.

When an employee has a dual appointment, we send both LES but the employee is on the master file only once, as the first appointment.

If the first appointment ends a DR must be completed to change the remaining appointment to have the REAL-FOR-DUAL field = 0 (zero).

• This will allow the second appointment to be recognized.