Examples

Resources

Endpoints

Considerations

Benefits

The benefit object in Gusto contains high level information about a particular benefit type and its tax considerations. When companies choose to offer a benefit, they are creating a Company Benefit object associated with a particular benefit.

Attributes

Attribute Type Read-Only Optional Default Description
id Integer X     the unique identifier of this benefit
name String X     name of this benefit
description String X     description of this benefit
pretax Boolean X     whether the benefit is deducted before tax calculations, thus reducing one’s taxable income
posttax Boolean X     whether the benefit is deducted after tax calculations
imputed Boolean X     whether the benefit is considered imputed income
healthcare Boolean X     whether the benefit is healthcare related
retirement Boolean X     whether the benefit is associated with retirement planning
yearly_limit Boolean X     whether the benefit has a government mandated yearly limit

Get all supported benefits

HTTP Method: GET

Endpoint: /v1/benefits

Returns: All benefits supported by Gusto

Sample Response Body:

[
  {
    "id": 1,
    "name": "Medical Insurance",
    "description": "Deductions and contributions for Medical Insurance",
    "pretax": true,
    "posttax": false,
    "imputed": false,
    "retirement": false,
    "healthcare": false,
    "yearly_limit": false
  }
]

Note for S-Corporations

An update to Gusto’s payroll engine in October, 2017, has pushed the responsibility of understanding how benefits should be taxed for 2% shareholders of S-Corporations onto the engine itself. Previously, Payroll Administrators had to associate 2% shareholders with posttax medical, dental, and vision benefits in order to tax those employees correctly (2% shareholders are not eligible for pre-tax deductions, and contributions are treated as imputed wages). That is no longer the case.

Now, S-Corp Payroll Administrators should associate all 2% shareholders to pretax medical, dental, and vision benefits through our Employee Benefits API. When payroll runs, Gusto will automatically determine whether to treat the benefit as pretax or posttax based on an employee’s 2% shareholder status.