Rules for the payment of bonuses under the labor code of the Russian Federation. What funds to reward? What to do with local acts

Many firms work on such a principle that their employees receive not only a salary, but also a bonus. At the same time, the organization itself determines what the type of this payment will be, as well as how much it will have. Therefore, you should understand the rules for transferring funds and how they are paid to employees of the company.

Important! The monthly bonus is presented in the form of a monetary reward or incentive for an employee of the company, and is usually paid if he has shown good results in his work.

This remuneration may be specified directly in the employment contract or in the regulations of the organization itself. It can have a fixed amount or be constantly calculated, for which the employee's earnings and a certain percentage are taken into account.

Monthly rewards can be presented in two forms:

• production, which are part of the salary itself, therefore, are related to the amount of work performed by the employee;
• non-production, for example, a salary bonus is given due to the employee having a minor child or other reasons for paying this bonus.

Both types are paid only at the initiative of the employer. How to carry out an operation for accruing and paying a monthly premium in 1C - see this video:

How is the monthly premium calculated?

In Art. 114 of the Labor Code contains information that the company itself establishes and controls the accrual and transfer of premiums. The firm determines when the funds are paid out, and in what amount.

Important! To calculate the optimal amount of monthly remuneration, the employee's salary and a specific period of work are taken into account.

Article 114. Annual paid holidays

Employees are granted annual leave while maintaining their place of work (position) and average earnings.

Formula and calculation example

A simple formula is used to calculate:

Bonus amount = salary / number of days in the period * number of days worked for a certain period of time.

For example, an employee of an organization has a salary equal to 35 thousand rubles, and for a month he worked 22 days, but he did not come to work for 3 days, because for personal reasons he was forced to take leave without pay. In this case, the amount of the premium is: 35,000/22*19=30227 rubles.

Also, a formula can be used for calculation, which takes into account not only the salary, but also the incentive, presented as a percentage of this value. In this case, the formula is used:

Bonus amount = salary * percentage expression of encouragement / 100 / total number of days per month * number of days worked.

Under the above conditions, it can additionally be set that the percentage is 40%. In this case, the amount of the premium is: 35,000 * 40% / 100/22 * 19 = 12,090 rubles.

How performance bonuses are calculated and calculated

Some responsible persons are involved in the calculation of remuneration, which include:

• heads of various departments of the organization, whose duties include analysis of the effectiveness of the work of specialists;
• the management of the entire company, which evaluates how optimally business areas are developing due to the activity of employees;
• responsible persons who can work in any division, therefore, are appointed responsible by the formation of the corresponding order by the head of the company.

The accrual process itself is divided into successive stages:

• criteria are selected according to which funds are paid, and for this, the financial condition of the company and profit for the period are taken into account;
• a corresponding memo is issued;
• the grounds used to transfer the incentive are fixed;
• employees receiving funds are determined, as well as the amount of payment is determined;
• the amount of remuneration is agreed with the financial department;
• the head forms and signs the order based on the data received;
• paid by the accounting department.

Thus, the procedure for accruing and paying bonuses is considered understandable for each company.

What income code is used

When accounting for a premium, it is important to correctly identify the income code that is relevant to it. Important! This code is especially relevant when filling out the 2-NDFL certificate.

A certain income is written as a number of 4 digits, and since the bonus is part of the salary, the code 2000 is used to determine it.

How is vacation pay calculated when awarding bonuses?

When calculating vacation pay, factors affecting them are taken into account, which include:

• whether there is an excess of premiums or not;
• whether the period has been fully worked out or not.

For example, an employee has fully worked out a specific period, so remuneration is included in the payslip. This leads to the fact that this payment should be included in full in vacation pay.

How the premium is accounted for in accounting

Since there are several types of these payments, they are reflected in accounting in different ways. The management of the company itself makes the appropriate decision, and usually the remuneration is added to the income of employees, therefore they are presented as a full-fledged object of taxation.

Important! Bonuses are part of the income, so they must be strictly taken into account by the accountant.

Bonus via posting

Remuneration in the company can be issued at the expense of the free profit of the company. To do this, accounting will certainly reflect all remuneration with the corresponding entries.

Important! If funds are issued in the form of dividends, then the management of the company issues a special order, and it is studied by all employees, who then put their signature on it. You will learn how to pay dividends to the founders of an LLC.

Usually, to reflect payments, account D20 K70 is used, indicating that the payments were made at the expense of expenses in the main direction of the company's work. If other expenses are used, then posting D91.2 K70 is applied.

Premiums and personal income tax

These payments are not always subject to personal income tax, and all types of such remuneration are listed in Art. 217 NK. - you need to pay or not, whether the assistance is taxed, you will find out in the article at the link.

Such remunerations include remuneration for achievements in the field of technology, education, science, art, culture or other areas of significant importance to the entire state. All these payments are appointed by the Government or state officials.

Also, bonuses that are issued by companies may not be taxed, and they must be represented by gifts or material assistance. In this case, it is not required to pay personal income tax on these funds. But this takes into account some rules:

• per year, such payment should not exceed 4 thousand rubles;
• funds are not issued just like that, therefore they are usually assigned on some significant dates;
• without fail, a donation agreement is drawn up with the employee who received such remuneration, and it is done in writing and taking into account the requirements in Art. 574 GK.

Only if the above requirements are taken into account, it is possible to avoid paying personal income tax on a certain remuneration. you will learn how to fill out an application for a personal income tax refund.

How is the monthly premium reflected in the 6-personal income tax certificate

Funds that are transferred to employees every month are necessarily included by companies in payroll costs. Therefore, citizens' income arises on the day the remuneration is accrued, and the date is reflected in the certificate, namely in line 100 of the second section.

Personal income tax is withheld on the day the premium is paid, and the amount is indicated in the second section of the document in line 110.

Important! The tax payment deadline is the day following the day the tax was withheld, and information about this is recorded in the second section of the document and on line 120.

Conclusion

Thus, monthly bonuses act as a reward and are assigned to many employees who perform well in their job duties.

They must be correctly calculated and transferred in a timely manner. In certain situations, it is not required to levy personal income tax on these funds, but in most cases it becomes necessary to pay tax.

What is the monthly tiered bonus you will learn in this video:

Information about bonuses will be useful to the management of the company, an accountant and an employee who will be able to demand the due amount of the bonus if the conditions prescribed in the constituent documents are met.

General information

Let's understand the concept and find out in which regulations it is worth looking for answers.

What it is?

Bonuses - payments in monetary terms to an employee of an enterprise in excess of the basic salary. This is a reward for achieving a certain result, for fulfilling duties, etc.

It is also a method of stimulating the growth of achieved indicators. The bonus system is developed by representatives of the labor and salary department, or the employee development service, and then it is approved by the company's management.

Provisions on bonuses - an independent local regulatory act of the enterprise or an appendix to. The general provision is the basis for the development of provisions on bonuses for a structural unit.

It is possible to establish an individual bonus in accordance with what is drawn up between the individual and the employer.

The management is obliged to accrue and pay bonuses, which are provided for in the contract. Most often, the following persons receive awards:

Types of bonuses to employees

The reward system should link several elements. It can be realized thanks to:

• bonus indicators;
• conditions;
• sizes;
• determination of the circle by the employee who is entitled to the bonus;
• payment frequency.

What types of bonus payments of a stimulating nature when bonuses to employees can be? Allocate:

The form of payment can be:

• monetary;
• commodity (a gift in the form of household appliances, personalized watches, a certificate to a beauty salon, etc.).

In accordance with the assessment of performance indicators, the following are distinguished:

According to the methods of accrual, the premium is divided into:

The periods for paying bonuses depend on:

• features of the work of the company, the entire division or an individual employee;
• the nature of the bonus indicator;
• keeping records of the results of work for specific periods.

There are:

If we consider the intended purpose of bonuses, then we can distinguish the following groups of systems:

Current regulatory framework

The Labor Code provides for incentive payments to employees in the form of bonuses (). The definition of the bonus is contained in, which says that it can be paid by the employer, but does not apply to mandatory transfers.

The employer does not have the right to deprive the employee of the bonus if there has been a violation of discipline ().

The legislative documents do not detail how bonuses should be paid - employers themselves have the right to regulate this issue ().

Disputes about the size and accrual - a labor dispute, which is considered in. The form of payments is stated in.

The primary documentation of the company, which is intended for accounting for the purpose of taxing profits of labor costs in the form of bonuses, is:

• , which confirms the transfer of the bonus to the employee.

Features of the award are considered:

• in collective agreements;
• in internal labor regulations;
• in other guidance documents

How are employee bonuses calculated?

The salary is accrued to the employee for those labor obligations that he performs in accordance with job descriptions. Bonuses are provided in cases where a certain result is obtained at the end of, for example, a month.

In individual firms, the size of bonuses is set when the plan is fulfilled or exceeded. All cases in which an employee can count on receiving a bonus are spelled out in collective agreements.

Documents are attached to the internal regulations, signed by all employees of the organization. Thus, they agree to the terms that are being considered.

The heads of the structural divisions of the enterprise write a memorandum addressed to the general director of the company. It reflects:

• information about the employee;
• the amount of the payment (as a percentage of salary or in a fixed amount);
• results that have been achieved (for which remuneration is paid)

The accountant is responsible for the execution of the document, which calculates the salary. The order must be certified by the signatures of the management, the seal of the company is affixed. The employee gets acquainted with the contents of the document and puts his signature.

The bonus will be issued along with the salary according to the payroll. Remuneration is an integral part of earnings, but its amount is written out in separate lines with its own income code.

So, consider the basic procedure for calculating bonuses to an employee:

1. The management issues an order for.
2. From the accrued amount, it is worth deducting the tax on the income of an individual.
3. When drawing up employment contracts, it is reflected when it is possible to accrue a bonus, in what amount the payment will be made.
4. When rewarding employees, it is worth compiling a list of persons to whom incentive funds will be paid. The list is signed by the head of the company. The bonus may be issued without taking into account when the salary is transferred.
5. If an individual has a stable income, the bonus will be calculated as a percentage: the salary is multiplied by the percentage of the bonus. For example, the salary is 30 thousand rubles, and the bonus is 40%. Then the calculation will be as follows: 30 thousand * 40% \u003d 12 thousand - this is the premium, from which 13% (income tax) is deducted. As a result, a non-handed person will receive 10,440 rubles.
6. If an employee works from output, then earnings are multiplied by the percentage of bonuses and 13% is subtracted.
7. When accrual is carried out in a fixed amount, it is necessary to subtract 13% from such a payment. The result is the means that the employee of the company should receive.

Let's take a closer look at the award order. This is a structured form that must be filled out according to the rules. Document structure:

• general provisions;
• the size of the premium;
• rules for issuing funds;
• circumstances that are the basis for reducing the bonus payment.

The first section contains the goal of rewarding an employee - good performance indicators, quality of work, modernization of capacity and equipment used in the organization.

They reflect the rate, size, accrual technique, the framework in which the calculations of fulfilled obligations will be made. The order must contain information about the unit, profession, methods, principles for calculating remuneration.

A large enterprise describes all the indicators of departments, a small one - only 3. The formation of all indicators is carried out on the basis of special applications that provide for the procedure for paying bonuses to an employee.

The amount of the bonus should be fixed in the sections on the rules for bonuses for the amount of work performed. The order reflects information about the rules for issuing, the person responsible for the execution of the document is determined.

There is also an additional section that fixes the procedure for accruals for individual work, which is carried out in accordance with the employment contract. It can be bonus payments to a significant date.

Do I need to write an application (sample)

The documentary justification for the promotion is carried out by the head of the company - he writes an application for the award. Such a document is called a submission for a bonus. Forms are developed by clerks of the company.

If such a form is not installed at the enterprise, the application is written in the form.

How to submit an award:

1. The header reflects the data of the director, information about the head, who submits the form, the position held
2. Enter the title (financial incentive) and data about the person to whom the bonus should be awarded. Indicate the name of the document - a presentation or a memo.
3. Information is provided on the merits for which the employee is entitled to a bonus, as well as a request for accrual of the amount of remuneration (prescribe its amount if the director does not determine it).
4. Information about the compiler is entered.

Retirement payouts

Should the company pay a bonus to an employee who has already been fired if the order was created after the person left the company, while the bonus is issued for a specific time of work (year, quarter, month) upon achieving certain results?

The rights to the bonus may arise until the moment of dismissal. But to accrue such an amount, it is worth summing up the results of the company's activities for a specific period. This means that the employer will not be able to pay such funds until the person leaves.

There are no provisions in the legislation of the Russian Federation that would prohibit the payment of bonuses to dismissed personnel, if the right to such arose earlier - when the person was still working.

In addition, failure to pay or reduce the amount of remuneration is an illegal act. This means that the employer must fulfill its obligation to pay bonuses to the dismissed employee of the enterprise.

The payment is made within the terms stipulated by local acts, even at the end of the year. It will be necessary to adhere to the bonus rules reflected in.

The employer cannot include a clause stating that upon dismissal, the employee will be deprived of the right to a bonus (). It is not allowed to discriminate an employee in any way when paying wages and in accordance with.

But there is such a nuance - the company's management may not pay the full amount of the premium. If the person worked for half of the billing period. The calculation will be based on hours worked.

Often, the provisions prescribe the condition that the bonus payment is made in full if the employee leaves the company for a good reason (when moving, conscripting into the army, leaving for a well-deserved rest due to age, etc.).

Unearned copayment reserve

The unearned premium reserve is considered to be a part of the BSP that comes under an agreement concluded and valid in the reporting periods, as well as during the validity of insurance contracts, which goes beyond the reporting period.

The reserve of unearned premiums is referred to in. RNP is formed to guarantee the fulfillment of the assumed obligation under the contract that did not end in the reporting periods.

This is an insurance premium that is accrued in accordance with contracts that are valid within the billing period, and refers to the time of the contract, which goes beyond the reporting period.

Risk premium

The risk premium is an additional return that is paid to investors above the limit that can be transferred on a risk-free financial transaction. Such income increases in proportion to the increase in the risk of capital investments.

It does not take into account the overall level of investment risks for a particular investment instrument, but the systematic risk, which is determined by beta coefficients.

Reflection in accounting (postings)

When rewarding employees, the accountant will need to make the following entries:

When drawing up a collective agreement, the company has the right to apply the system of additional payments in the form of bonuses.

And if this is stated in the primary documentation, the employer cannot evade paying the due amount to the employee who has fulfilled the necessary conditions.

Income tax payers in Russia are those individuals - citizens and individual entrepreneurs who are tax residents of the country and receive any income (Article 207 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). Moreover, these receipts can be both in kind and in cash. Bonuses, in fact, are also the income of a person that he receives according to ...

Bonus payments by employers to employees at the end of the year is a form of incentives. The normative act of the enterprise is the Regulation on bonuses, developed by the commission or the head and presented to the team for review. The document is a local act, which allows you to include positions that best reflect the specifics of the enterprise. The annual bonus is calculated on conditions that should not contradict the current civil and labor legislation.

Annual bonus accrual

Labor legislation defines bonus payments as incentive payments, which are part of the employee's salary (Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The peculiarity of the award is the need to determine the indicators that give the right to an incentive payment. The Regulation establishes the basic conditions for the calculation of bonuses.

To fulfill the conditions of bonuses, check the compliance of persons with the requirements and make the calculation, a responsible person or commission is appointed at the enterprise. Practice shows that the final decision on the appointment of the annual bonus is the prerogative of the head.

An example of a common mistake when determining the circle of bonuses

The Aktiv enterprise submitted for the approval of the team the Regulations on bonuses developed by the commission. The document identified persons who are not entitled to receive bonuses - employees registered under GPC agreements, seasonal workers employed for the summer period, external part-time workers.

Representatives of the labor collective did not approve the Regulation, citing discrimination of the rights of part-time workers (Article 132 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Persons accepted under an employment contract as part-time workers have rights and guarantees similar to the rights of persons with contracts for the main employment. The regulation on bonuses for the Aktiv company has been sent for revision.

Indicators for the appointment of annual bonuses

When determining performance indicators, different working conditions are considered to receive incentive payments. The local act provides for distinctive conditions for different professions and positions of employees, forms of remuneration. Read also the article: → "". Approximate bonus rates for common forms of remuneration:

The document regulating the payment of bonuses must define the conditions for depriving the promotion. The basis for the complete deprivation of the bonus is a serious misconduct of the employee - absenteeism, replaced by a disciplinary sanction, appearing at work in a state of intoxication, deliberate damage to property.

The use of flexible production indicators for calculating the amount of bonuses does not exclude the possibility for the employer to determine a fixed part. The purpose of the award can have 2 components - a fixed and a variable part.

Types of bonuses

The amount of bonus remuneration is determined depending on the procedure specified in the Regulation on bonuses. The company can set up various accrual options:

• Payment of average earnings in proportion to the time worked during the year.
• Payment taking into account the coefficient depending on the length of service at the enterprise.
• The amount calculated according to the coefficient of labor participation (KTU) when bonuses are paid to the teams of workshops, team contracts.
• Payment without additional conditions in the amount of salary or a fixed percentage of the amount, subject to the indicators of the purpose of the bonus.

The choice of the type of bonus is determined by the employer based on the specifics of the activity and based on the reasonableness of incentives.

Calculation of the premium amount using the formula

The most common payment option is a fixed amount based on salary, calculated in proportion to hours worked. To obtain the amount, the calculation formula is used: Pr \u003d Pr norms / Dn norms * Dn work, where:

• Pr - the amount of the premium to be paid;
• Pr norms - the size of the maximum available premium;
• Days of norms - the number of standard working days in a year;
• Days worked - the number of days actually worked.

In addition to the popular simple method of calculating bonuses for workers on a time-based form of remuneration, there are less popular options.

An example of calculating the premium using KTU

The Compass organization set up an annual bonus fund to reward installers K., M. and P, who work in a team way. The total amount of the award was 30,000 rubles.

According to the terms of the employment contract and the Regulations on bonuses, the distribution is made by the foreman according to the amount of useful participation. As an indicator of KTU, the foreman takes the man-hours spent by each employee. As a result, K. received 40% of the amount, M. - 35% and P. - 25%.

Order and statement for the payment of bonuses

The basis for the payment of bonuses to employees is the order. In personnel workflow, the form of order No. T-11 is used to reward one employee or No. T-11a when encouraging a group of people. Read also the article: → "". Documents from the album of unified forms have not been mandatory since 2013, but continue to be used as the most optimal forms for primary accounting. The employee must familiarize himself with the data of the order against signature.

The bonus is issued according to a separate statement or as part of monthly payments, depending on the source of payments and the expense write-off account.

In accounting, statements are used:

• Settlement and payment form T-49. Used to place data on the accrual and issue of amounts. It is the most optimal form for paying bonuses in cash.
• Settlement form T-51. It is used when transferring bonuses to the employee's salary card.
• Payment form T-53. It is used when issuing a cash premium in the inter-settlement period, upon payment of which personal income tax is charged in the total amount of accruals.

Terms of payment of premiums

The terms for payment of wages and its parts (bonuses) are established by the new edition of Art. 136 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The amended article, which entered into force on September 3, 2016, determines the period for paying employee benefits within 15 days after accrual. Employers have the right to set any date for the calculation of bonuses:

• The last working or calendar day of the year at the same time as payroll.
• The date set after the adoption of internal reporting by the founders.
• The day following the submission of the annual accounts.

In the explanations of the Ministry of Labor to the new edition of Art. 136 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, posted on the official website of the Ministry, it is noted that employers can independently determine the period of payments with the fixing of the order in the collective agreement, Regulation on bonuses or order. Labor legislation will not be violated if the provision on setting the deadline for calculating bonuses by order is fixed in local acts.

After accrual of the premium on the due date, payment is made within 15 days. An employer who has violated the deadline for payments to employees after accrual is subject to an administrative fine.

An example of the timing of bonus payments:

The Progress enterprise has set the date for accruing the bonus for the year - March 15, 2015. An appropriate order was issued on the appointment of bonuses to employees. The payment of the premium by the Progress enterprise must be made no later than March 30. Exceeding the deadline will be considered as a violation of labor laws.

Sources of bonuses at the enterprise

The enterprise in the Regulation on bonuses must fix the sources of financing, the type of which determines the accounting of the operation and taxation. One of the financing options is provided:

• From profit after tax.
• At the expense of expenses from ordinary activities.

Depending on the source of funding, transaction postings are determined:

The sums of bonuses are accrued contributions to the insurance funds. In the month of payment, the employee withholds personal income tax with simultaneous transfer to the budget.

Additional reflection of the premium

Annual bonuses received are not reflected in the employee's documents. The employee must be aware of the possibility of receiving bonuses at the end of the year, which is confirmed by the signature in the order.

An example of erroneous reflection in documents of information about bonuses:

Enterprise "Akkord" determined the possibility of bonuses for employees at the end of the year. In the order issued at the enterprise, a personnel worker made a clause about recording bonuses in the work book. During the inspection, the Labor Inspectorate made a remark, pointing out a violation of Art. 66 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Indicators of personal achievements are entered into the work book. Bonuses, the right to which is established in a collective agreement or other act, should not be reflected in the work book.

Question number 1. Is it possible to claim a bonus for a dismissed employee if the person has fully worked the calendar year without complaints, but at the time of dismissal, the bonus order was not issued?

The payment of bonuses at the end of the year and the list of persons is determined by the employer independently and voluntarily. In the absence of payments, violations of labor legislation are not made. If the Regulations on Bonuses stipulate a clause on the payment of bonuses only to full-time employees at the time of issuing the order, there is no opportunity to challenge the loss of funds.

Question number 2. Can the manager determine the circle of bonuses, regardless of performance indicators.

No, the actions must be justified. The Regulations on bonuses should set the parameters for assigning bonuses. The manager is the same employee as the rest of the employees and must adhere to the rules established by the company's documents.

Question number 3. Is it possible to transfer bonuses to a salary card?

You can, bonus payments are part of the salary.

Question number 4. Are bonus amounts included in the amount of income taken into account when calculating vacation pay?

Bonus amounts are included in the composition of income taken into account when determining the average wage.

Question number 5. Are there limits on the maximum amount of bonuses?

The legislation does not limit the upper limit of payments. The amounts are determined by the employer.

An employee bonus is a procedure that involves the accrual of additional amounts to the employee's established salary, which is of an incentive nature. The decision on the need for this is made by the head in accordance with legislative norms and existing local acts. According to the provisions of the Labor Code, a bonus is a payment that encourages an employee to further perform labor tasks with due dedication.

The essence of the award, its purpose, types and their differences

Bonus is an incentive measure applied by the manager in relation to the employee. The accrual of bonuses is not the direct responsibility of the manager, except in cases where the bonus is included in the mandatory clauses of the employment contract. According to the norms of the current legislation, an employee can be encouraged by declaring gratitude, transferring a cash bonus, rewarding with a valuable gift or a diploma.

It is also possible to present as a contender for the title of the best in the profession. The specified list is not exhaustive, since either the provision on bonuses may include other incentive options. A suitable incentive option is determined directly by the boss based on the current state of affairs.

Incentives are characterized by the following.

1. When evaluating the results of labor activity in the performance of direct duties, a bonus may be due to one employee or immediately to a group (workshop, department, etc.) for the contribution to obtaining significant results that exceeded the mandatory norm.
2. The form of encouragement can vary. It can be issued to employees in cash or in the form of a valuable gift: a watch, a ticket to a sanatorium, and the like.
3. Incentives differ according to the purpose: for high achievements - early fulfillment of the norm or its overfulfillment, for the fulfillment of a specific task that was set by the head.
4. According to the frequency of accrual, bonuses are divided into regular (monthly, quarterly, annual), as well as one-time.
5. Incentives differ in terms of indicators that serve as the basis for accrual: for many years of work, conscientious performance of duties, based on the results of the year. Also, payments can be tied to holidays.

In order for the bonus payment to an employee not to contradict the law, the company must have a certain local document that contains provisions governing the legality of bonus accrual.

Annual promotions

The amount of the bonus payment is calculated in accordance with the procedure provided for by the Regulations on bonus payments. The organization can accept different types of accruals:

• Bonus based on the average salary for the year;
• payment subject to a coefficient according to the length of service in the organization;
• payment subject to the coefficient of labor participation - KTU;
• amount without additional conditions in the amount of salary.

The peculiarity of the payment of bonuses lies in the need for indicators that provide the right to receive an incentive payment. A certain responsible person or a special commission monitors the fulfillment of the conditions. But making the final decision as to whether the bonus based on the results of work for the year will be accrued to the employee is the prerogative of the manager.

Quarterly supplements

A quarterly bonus is a type of material incentive that is paid to employees 1 time every 3 months. The decision on the need for accrual is made by the management of the enterprise according to a variety of performance criteria and the results of production activities for a certain period. In a number of cases, for example, when imposing a disciplinary sanction, some employees may be deprived of bonus payments in full or in part.

The current legislation does not contain an exact definition of the term “quarterly bonus”, does not include the payment of the bonus to employees in the duties of the head, and does not establish its minimum amount. The calculation of the quarterly bonus and its accrual can be regulated by local acts that are in force in the organization. It can be fixed or presented as a percentage of the basic salary.

For personal achievements

Such bonuses are one-time and are paid not for the fulfillment of established indicators or conditions, but according to the results of a general assessment of the work of a certain employee. Such payments often do not have a relationship with certain labor achievements and are carried out at the discretion of the authorities. An incentive measure is the right of the employer, but is not included in the list of his obligations. For this reason, in order to receive this type of bonus, a certain employee does not need to comply with any conditions or a previously established basis.

Such bonuses are not included in the payment system and are not taken into account when determining the average salary of a person. They are not subject to protection by labor dispute commissions, but can be entered in the labor book - as an encouragement.

On what basis are bonuses awarded?

Incentive payments give an incentive to the employee to achieve better and greater results in the framework of labor activity. Thus, the following grounds for the payment of bonuses can be distinguished:

• execution and overfulfillment of the plan;
• frequent overtime;
• considerable length of service;
• successful work with clients;
• initiative and innovation that contributed to the development of the organization;
• early performance of duties;
• fulfillment of work plans on time;
• perform complex tasks quickly and efficiently.

If there are such grounds, management considers it appropriate to support and encourage the employee. The Labor Code does not limit the employer in the number of grounds for paying bonuses, as well as the amount of incentive payments. Also, the company has the right to build its own system, according to which they accrue monetary incentives to employees.

Rules for calculating the amount of premium, taxation

According to Art. 144 of the Labor Code, the authorities have the right to establish different systems of bonuses, incentive payments and allowances, the maximum amount of which is not limited. Such systems may also be regulated by a collective agreement. Basically, the volume of bonuses is calculated using an employment contract, local regulations and an order in the form of T-11 or T-11a.

If the bonus is calculated according to a percentage of the salary, then the accounting department uses the following algorithm:

• salary multiplied by the bonus percentage;
• salary and interest add up;
• the amount is multiplied by the regional coefficient;
• personal income tax is calculated from the amount received (13%, for non-residents - 30%).

If the bonus implies a fixed amount, then it is added to the salary. Based on the provisions of Art. 255 of the Tax Code, labor costs imply any type of financial accruals in cash and / or in kind, encouraging bonuses and payments, compensatory charges that are related to the working regime or its conditions. Expenses also include one-time incentive accruals provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation, labor contracts and / or collective agreements related to the maintenance of these employees.

But, based on paragraphs. 21 and 22 st. 270 of the Tax Code, expenses that reduce the tax base according to income tax include 2 types of expenses. The first one is for any options for remuneration that are provided for work, except for remuneration paid on the basis of labor contracts. The second is expenses in the form of bonuses, which are accrued to employees at the expense of special-purpose money or earmarked revenues. Under special purpose funds are accepted funds that are determined by the owners of enterprises for the payment of bonuses.

According to article 217 of the Tax Code, there is a certain list of income that is not subject to taxation. So, awards are not present in this list. But they are fully subject to taxation in accordance with the procedure established by Ch. 23 NK.

Based on paragraph 1 of Art. 236 of the Tax Code, according to the UST, enterprises recognize payments and other remuneration accrued by the taxpayer in favor of individuals under civil law and labor contracts, the subject of which is the performance of work, the provision of services and copyright agreements. An exception is remuneration paid by an individual entrepreneur.

At the same time, the described payments and remunerations are not recognized as an object of taxation, provided that for taxpaying organizations these payments are not included in the category of expenses that reduce the tax base for income tax - in accordance with paragraph 3 of Art. 236 NK. Based on this, when premiums do not reduce the tax base for income, these payments are not subject to UST.

When bonuses are included in the cost of labor payments that reduce the tax base, then such incentive payments are subject to UST in accordance with the general procedure.

How is the order issued and what are the terms of payment

Bonuses are paid to employees on the basis of the order of the head. The order must specify in detail the recipient of the award, the reasons for its appointment and the amount of monetary incentives. The order may concern only 1 employee or group. But the order should indicate which paragraph of the Regulation on bonuses the head refers to, what procedure and amount of the bonus is expected.

Employees review the order and sign it. The order can be executed in accordance with the form T-11 and T-11a. Regular payments, which are included in wages, are not included in the work book. Such incentives may be reflected in the employee's personal file.

The exact date of issuance of bonuses is determined according to local documentation: internal labor regulations, collective or labor agreement. Often such incentive payments are included in the salary. This option is acceptable, based on the provisions of Part 1 of Art. 129 TK. That is, when the Regulation on bonuses establishes the payment of bonuses for a certain period, for example, a month, then the bonus is accrued in the next month after the reporting month or in a specific specified period. When the premium is accrued for the year, the payment is made in March.

If a specific date for the payment of bonuses for the year is indicated in the local document, then this does not apply to violations of the Labor Code and the accrual of funds will occur on the specified date.

In a number of options, bonuses can be accrued automatically: provided that the organization completes tasks on time and at a sufficient level. Such an approach partly eliminates the purpose of the bonus as a lever stimulating working enthusiasm, since if the enterprise fails to fulfill the plan, the bonus is deducted from the salary of employees, which is often perceived by employees as a punishment, which, in essence, is not.

Grounds for deprivation of the award and deprivation procedure

The Labor Code provides not only incentive measures in relation to employees, but also the imposition of penalties for violations of their own duties. If there is a reason for deprivation of the bonus, it is not issued to the employee. Failure to comply with established labor standards, being late, and the like can act as violations on the part of the employee.

What is the procedure for withdrawing an award

After the expiration of 6 months from the date of the violation, the application of measures to the employee is not authorized.

The decision to collect is made out in the version of the order. The order details the sanctions and the circumstances that forced them to apply. The guilty employee must be familiarized with this order within 3 working days from the date of its issuance. Refusal to familiarize must be documented in the version of the act.

Employee bonus paymentoccurs in the manner established by each employer independently, and may depend on many factors related both to the grounds for accrual and to the algorithms for calculating the bonus. Consider the most common situations of bonus accrual and questions arising from them.

Employee bonuses are calculated as follows: types and sources

The reason for paying an employee such an incentive as a bonus may be:

• achievements of a labor nature, committed both by the labor collective as a whole and personally by a specific employee;
• events that are not directly related to work, but caused by the intention to further encourage the employee (for example, in connection with an anniversary or holiday date).

On the grounds of the first group, the employer has the unconditional right to include bonuses in the salary structure (Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), and therefore take them into account as part of the payment for work, i.e., attributing the accrued bonus amounts to the expenses corresponding to the analytics, which will reduce profit base.

It is quite difficult to include bonuses accrued on the grounds of the second group in the salary. The Ministry of Finance of Russia (letter No. 03-03-06/1/14283 dated April 24, 2013) insists on accounting for expenses on them at the expense of net profit.

According to the nature of payments, bonuses can be:

• systematic (regular), accrual and payment of which is carried out in compliance with the established frequency (once a month, quarter, year or other period of time);
• one-time (irregular), accrued and paid from case to case when an appropriate reason for payment arises.

The bonuses included in the salary structure can have both types of periodicity. But among them, as a rule, systematically paid incentives prevail. Bonuses that are not related to labor achievements are usually one-time.

Despite the existence of different sources for the payment of bonuses, bonuses in any case will amount to the income of the employee. And this income will need to be subject to personal income tax in the usual manner (clause 1 of article 210 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation) and insurance premiums (clause 1 of article 420 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, clause 1 of article 20.1 of the law "On Compulsory Social Insurance against Accidents ..." dated July 24, 1998 No. 125-FZ). Moreover, for the purposes of calculating income tax, expenses can include not only those contributions that are accrued on bonuses included in the salary structure, but also related to bonuses not related to labor activity (subclause 49, clause 1, article 264 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated April 2, 2010 No. 03-03-06/1/220).

According to what document is the procedure for awarding

The employer must develop all aspects of the bonus system used by him by himself, setting them in an internal regulatory act (Article 135 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). This act can be created in the form of a separate document devoted only to bonus issues (provisions on bonuses, incentives, incentive payments). But it is also permissible to include the rules for calculating bonuses as an integral part in the texts of other internal documents on labor law issues:

• wage regulations;
• collective agreement;
• labor agreement.

A specially developed separate document (or part of a document devoted to labor law issues) is convenient for reflecting the bonus procedure used for most members of the labor collective. Its presence allows not to prescribe in detail the rules for calculating bonuses in the labor agreement with each of the employees, but to give in this agreement only a reference to the details of the relevant document on the procedure for bonuses. Thus, the development of a normative act on bonuses makes it possible to enter detailed rules for calculating this incentive in employment contracts only with those persons whose bonuses are carried out on an individual basis.

The presence of an internal document on bonuses is mandatory:

• for attributing bonuses to the salary structure (Article 135 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• accounting for bonuses when calculating average earnings (Article 139 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The inclusion of bonuses in the salary structure makes them mandatory for payment if the conditions under which remuneration should be accrued are met. At the same time, it is allowed to reflect in the bonus document the rules for the payment of bonuses that are not related to labor achievements.

The regulation on bonuses should cover issues related to:

• all types of remuneration applied by the employer;
• the conditions under which each type of bonus is accrued;
• frequency of accrual of incentive payments;
• the circle of persons entitled to each type of bonus;
• indicators by which the right of a particular employee to the corresponding type of remuneration is assessed;
• grounds depriving the possibility of receiving a bonus;
• systems for assessing indicators that reflect the right to receive an incentive payment, which makes it possible to convert the assessment of these indicators into a ruble equivalent;
• the process of reviewing the results of the evaluation of the labor contribution made by each of the employees;
• procedure to challenge the results of the distribution of bonuses.

Since 2017, it has been allowed not to develop internal acts on labor law issues for micro-enterprises (Article 309.2 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). However, in such a situation, the employer will have to spell out in detail all the bonus rules in each of the labor agreements, and the labor agreements themselves will be drawn up in a certain form. The form to be used for these purposes was approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of August 27, 2016 No. 858.

What can be used to accrue bonuses to employees when calculating salaries?

The process for calculating the amount of bonuses depends on:

• from the base taken as the basis for the calculation;
• from the algorithm that determines the sequence of calculation of the base itself or its constituent parts;
• from the limits set for taking into account.

The basis of the calculation can be:

• fixed amount of remuneration;
• salary;
• actually accrued earnings;
• the sum of bonus indicators expressed in ruble equivalent, which serve to assess the employee's contribution to the labor process.

All conditions affecting the calculation must be specified in the regulation on bonuses.

The accrual of a bonus in a fixed amount can occur in different ways, depending on the conditions for accounting for the time of actual work in the bonus period, fixed in the procedure for calculating the bonus from the accrual base:

1. The amount of bonus does not depend on the actual hours worked, that is, remuneration will always be accrued, even if the employee did not work at all in the period under review.
2. When calculating the amount of payment, the time of actual work by any of the methods established by the regulatory document is taken into account. For example, this amount is calculated:

• in proportion to the number of days (calendar or working) actually worked in the period;
• without accruing it for the month of the period that turned out to be not fully worked out (for a quarterly bonus, for example, in such a situation one of the following coefficients will need to be applied: 1/3 or 2/3).

By setting the salary or actual earnings as the accrual base, they immediately determine the percentage value of the share that will be the bonus accrued from the corresponding base.

Compensation based on salary is essentially like a bonus set at a fixed amount, and may or may not depend in exactly the same way on the time of actual work in the bonus period. It differs from the premium accrued in a fixed amount:

• obligatory application to the accrued amount of the district coefficient, if it takes place in the region of work;
• the need to choose a method for calculating bonuses for periods of change in salary, which may be, for example, establishing the obligation to take into account the updated salary amount when calculating bonuses:
  • from the beginning of the period for which the calculation is made;
  • from the period following the salary change;
  • in the period of change, taking into account the proportion of the number of days (calendar or working) falling on each of the salaries.

For a bonus defined as a share of actual earnings, the issue of accounting or not accounting for the time actually worked in the period is not important, since this time is already taken into account at the time of payroll. But it will be necessary to reflect the choice of the applied algorithm for calculating actual earnings in the bonus rules. You can calculate it, for example:

• summing up all the actual wages accrued for the period, regardless of which of the component parts of the wages it relates to;
• having determined (for a bonus period exceeding a month) the average value of the actual salary for the month, including in its calculation all payments accrued for the period, regardless of their relation to one or another component of wages for work, and dividing the amount of these payments by the number of months in award period.

For the bonus base, set as the sum of the bonus indicators expressed in ruble equivalent, which serve to assess the employee's contribution to the labor process, the algorithm for calculating this base is simple in itself and is determined as the sum of the ruble values ​​of the corresponding indicators. But the calculation of the value corresponding to each of the indicators will depend on the system for evaluating this particular indicator and on the specific formula used to calculate its ruble value. Since both the assessment systems and the formulas may turn out to be different, including those involving the use of a system of increasing (or decreasing) coefficients, the calculation of such a base will ultimately turn out to be difficult, although it will most realistically reflect the contribution of the employee to the results of the work of the entire team for the period.

How to calculate bonuses for surcharges and overtime

Surcharges and overtime are payments designed to compensate for the performance by the employee of labor functions in special working conditions. Their payment in all aspects is regulated by the provisions of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. They are fully included in the salary, forming its compensation part (Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The issue of accruing bonuses for additional payments and overtime can only arise if the basis for calculating the amount of bonuses is actually accrued earnings for the period. Despite the fact that this earnings can, as already mentioned above, be determined in different ways, all the amounts accrued during the bonus period that form the salary, including bonuses and overtime, are taken into account.

If the bonus is set to be calculated from salary, then additional payments and overtime will not be taken into account when calculating bonuses, since the calculation base here, by definition, forms only a part of the accrued salary. When the bonus is accrued in a fixed amount or on the sum of the bonus indicators estimated in ruble terms, then it is not tied to the salary at all and, accordingly, does not depend on it in any way.

How to calculate the premium, taking into account the regional coefficient and northern allowances

The regional coefficient and the northern allowance are additional payments of a compensatory nature, taking into account the fact of work in special climatic conditions. They also represent the part of the salary that must be paid. The difference between them is that the district coefficient is paid from the first day of work, and the right to receive the northern allowance and its increase depends on the length of service in the relevant locality. The size of the coefficient and allowance for each region is established by the Government of the Russian Federation, but at the regional level it is possible to increase these values ​​(Articles 316, 317 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Articles 10, 11 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On State Guarantees and Compensations ..." dated February 19, 1993 No. 4520- 1).

It is mandatory to increase the amount of the accrued bonus at the expense of the district coefficient when the bonuses are calculated from the salary and the corresponding coefficient operates in the district. In all other cases, the issue of applying the coefficient remains unresolved by law. On the one hand, it is not necessary to accrue a premium taking into account it, because:

• it is already taken into account in the earnings actually accrued for the period;
• the accrual of a bonus in a fixed amount or from the sum of bonus indicators evaluated in ruble terms is not tied to a salary that requires an increase by an appropriate coefficient.

On the other hand, the current legislation does not fix the procedure for applying the district coefficient to bonuses. Therefore, bonus rules can provide for their accrual using this coefficient in all situations for calculating incentive payments included in wages. The excuse here is that the bonus is part of the salary.

The procedure for calculating northern allowances is regulated by an instruction approved by order of the Ministry of Labor of the RSFSR dated November 22, 1990 No. 2. It contains a ban on accruing allowances for the following bonus payments (clause 19 of the instruction):

• lump-sum remuneration for years of service;
• remuneration based on the results of work for the year;
• incentives of a one-time nature and not provided for by the system of remuneration for work.

At the same time, the instruction implies the possibility of accruing bonuses for bonuses based on the results of work for a quarter, season or year, but with the condition that, in order to calculate the monthly amount of the bonus, the bonuses will be distributed over the months of the corresponding period in proportion to the hours worked.

By the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 01.12.2015 No. AKPI15-1253, the provisions of paragraph 19 of the instructions prohibiting the accrual of an allowance for remuneration paid for length of service and based on the results of work for the year were invalidated as contradicting the current Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Thus, the northern allowance should be charged on all bonus payments provided for by the wage system.

The procedure for paying bonuses to employees under the new salary rules

After the changes made to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, from 03.10.2016, the terms for paying not only vacation pay (Article 136 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) and calculation upon dismissal (Article 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), but also salaries, turned out to be legally limited.

The calculation of wages for the past month must now be carried out within 15 calendar days following this month (Article 136 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Accordingly, taking into account the preservation in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation of the wording prescribing the payment of wages every fortnight, the terms for paying the advance have become more definite. Now it must be issued in the second half of the month for which it is accrued, maintaining a 2-week interval between the advance payment and the salary.

However, questions remained regarding the payment of the premium. Despite the fact that the bonus provided by the wage system is a salary, it is not always accrued at the same frequency as the salary. Therefore, the Ministry of Labor of Russia (information dated September 21, 2016, posted on the website of the ministry) recommended that in the regulation on bonuses, it is recommended to reflect an indication of both the month of bonus accrual and the month (or specific date) of payment of bonuses.

An indication of the month of payment means that the premium should be paid no later than the 15th day of the corresponding month. If only the month of accrual is indicated, then the deadline for the payment of bonuses will be the 15th day of the month following the month of their accrual (letter of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated August 23, 2016 No. 14-1 / B-800).

Results

The procedure for calculating the premium is determined by many factors. First of all, these are bonus rules developed by the employer independently. Among these rules, the description of the features of the applied remuneration and the establishment of algorithms for calculating the base for calculating the amount of each type of bonus are of primary importance. When calculating bonuses, the district coefficients established in the region and the northern allowances, if the employee is entitled to them, must be taken into account.