Senior Payroll Tax Specialist (Remote Candidates Accepted)

The Payroll Tax Specialist is a hands-on role designed to provide leading payroll tax practice to support the University of Virginia and Health System. This position is responsible for overseeing the payroll withholding tax administration and ancillary tax services in a multi-state tax environment. In addition, this position is responsible for the accurate and timely tax reporting and distributions related to federal, state and local jurisdictions. The Payroll Tax Specialist will be responsible for cultivating and leading a productive relationship with the third-party tax administration vendor. The incumbent will report to the Assistant Director, Payroll Services and will not have any direct reports.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Responsible for day-to-day multi-state tax administration services, including monitoring for latest tax requirements at the federal, state and local levels and setting up and closing all payroll tax jurisdictions
• Ensure all periodic payroll tax payments, reporting, and other taxing authority requirements
• Develop and maintain an “Audit ready” tax compliance status and act as point of contact for all tax related audits
• Audit, maintain and update state unemployment taxes
• Primary point of contact for research, resolution, and response to payroll tax inquiries, such as system configuration requests and Payroll Services tax inquiry escalation
• Maintain the vendor relationship with the tax administration agent, in coordination with the Payroll Services Manager
• Enter payroll tax Journal Entries (JE), when applicable
• Reconcile and validate all quarterly and annual tax filings - federal, state and local
• Responsible for managing agencies tax notices along with supporting audit requests
• Support Payroll Accountant with account reconciliation impacted by tax transactions
• Assist with proper taxation for specific employee groups, such as students, foreign nationals and expatriates, when applicable
• Responsible for providing guidance with respect to taxable and non-taxable compensation items including executing a taxable and non-taxable yearly audit
• Receive and manage incoming payroll tax related mail
• Support payroll and tax administration diagnostics and ongoing process improvement and knowledge base development

Functional Area Outcomes

• Provide accurate and timely payroll tax data
• Deliver exceptional customer experience, resulting in high customer satisfaction
• Manage responsive, accurate, and timely resolution for payroll tax inquiries
• Ensure secure handling of confidential information

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Commit to best-in-class customer service experience for the University
• Possess strong written, verbal, and interpersonal skills
• Proficiency with Federal and State Payroll Quarterly/Annual tax filling
• Ability to meet all Payroll Tax Filing Deadlines
• Dedication to developing lean processes in support of Finance Dept mission
• Possess a positive, team-oriented approach to service delivery
• Navigate, interpret, and articulate complex policies and procedures

UVA Finance strives to provide excellent service and support to all stakeholders, and train, develop, reward and recognize our greatest asset, the people. It's an organization that values results and collaboration. We strive to create a welcoming and supportive workplace where everyone feels empowered to be their authentic selves and share ideas. We offer flexibility and encourage you to find your own balance between your work/personal lives and provide flexible work location options where possible.