BSO Connection Specifications for
Software Developers

This publication is for developers of payroll and tax reporting software who wish to enhance their products by incorporating Internet business services provided by the Social Security Administration.

What Is Business Services Online?
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Business Services Online (BSO) is a suite of Internet services for businesses and employers who exchange information with the Social Security Administration. BSO users must complete a one-time registration process before using the system.

Registered BSO users can:

	Submit W-2 wage files to the Social Security Administration
	Create, save, print, and submit Forms W-2 online
	View status, error, and notice information for W-2 data they have submitted
	View status and error information for their company's employer reports
	Acknowledge a notice from the Social Security Administration asking them to resubmit their W-2 data
	Request a one-time 15-day extension to resubmit their W-2 data

Many of these services are available immediately after registering. For up to 30 days after registering, users can log in with a personal identification number (PIN) and Social Security number. Some BSO features cannot be used until the user's password arrives in the mail.

Pre-selected organizations can also use BSO to: (a) verify Social Security numbers; (b) perform representative payee (Social Security Administration Form 623) functions; and/or (c) view notices and error information concerning Social Security number/name data in submitted annual wage reports. These features are currently in the pilot stage and available only by special arrangement with the Social Security Administration.

See the BSO User Handbook for more information about BSO features.

Internet Addresses
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Because the following Internet addresses are subject to change, the Social Security Administration recommends verifying them online before incorporating them into software applications.

BSO Welcome Page
www.socialsecurity.gov/bso/bsowelcome.htm

The BSO Welcome Page is the single point of entry for all BSO users. This web page provides a brief description of BSO, a registration link for new BSO users, and a login link for registered users. The BSO Welcome Page is the only BSO web page that should be bookmarked in payroll and tax reporting applications.

Employer Reporting Instructions & Information Page
www.socialsecurity.gov/employer

The Employer Reporting Instructions & Information Page provides a wealth of information and tools for employers and third-party tax reporters, including filing tips, wage reporting software, vendor information, forms and publications, and more. The Employer Reporting Instructions & Information Page also includes a link to the BSO Welcome Page.

Tips for Your Software Application
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Following are some tips for incorporating BSO into payroll and tax reporting software applications. For assistance with planning these or similar software enhancements, contact the Employer Services Liaison Officer for your region. Liaison Officer contact information is available by selecting How to Reach Us on www.socialsecurity.gov/employer.

Tip 1: Include links to the BSO Welcome Page and the Employer Reporting Instructions & Information Page on the main menu of your application. Also provide a link to www.irs.gov, where users can obtain filing instructions, extension request forms, and other Internal Revenue Service publications.

Tip 2: On the first business day in December, prompt users who have not already registered to do so now. Remind them that they will be asked for their name as it appears on their Social Security card, Social Security number, date of birth, mailing address, work phone number, fax number (optional), e-mail address (optional), company or business name, company employer identification number (unless the user is self-employed and has none), and company phone number. The Social Security number, date of birth, and employer identification number will be verified against Social Security Administration records.

Representatives of employers and businesses in the United States who are not United States citizens (and live outside the United States) may register without providing a Social Security number.

Encourage users to provide an e-mail address when they register so that the Social Security Administration can notify them when their PIN is about to expire. PIN expiration notices are sent by e-mail only. In the event that the Social Security Administration needs the user to resubmit a wage-data file, this notice can be sent to the user's registration e-mail address as well. To make this possible, the value for Preferred Method of Notification in the Magnetic Media Reporting and Electronic Filing (MMREF) RA record must be 1 (E-Mail/Internet). See below for tips concerning file preparation.

Every BSO user must register separately. Registering on behalf of another person is not permitted. PIN holders may not disclose their BSO password. BSO passwords should not be stored electronically and should be physically entered by the PIN holder. Users will be prompted to change their BSO password upon first use. Passwords must also be changed at least once every 365 days.

Tip 4: Periodically prompt administrators to deactivate PINs for employees who have left the company or no longer need to use BSO as part of their job. Timely PIN deactivation helps to ensure the security of information submitted to the Social Security Administration.

Tip 5: Provide processes for preparing wage-data files according to the Social Security Administration’s MMREF standards. MMREF-1 is for original (Form W-2) files, and MMREF-2 is for correction (Form W-2c) files.

Tip 6: To avoid discrepancies that could result in processing delays, provide functionality for correlating Internal Revenue Service Form W-2 totals with Form 941 (Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return).

Tip 7: Automatically populate the PIN field in the RA record with the submitter’s BSO PIN. (See MMREF-1 and MMREF-2 for information about MMREF record requirements.) The PIN in the RA record is the PIN assigned to the person who physically submits the file to the Social Security Administration. This may be someone other than the person who prepared the file.

Tip 8: Run AccuWage or AccuW2C before uploading wage-data files. This software checks the file to prevent errors that could result in a notice from the Social Security Administration requiring the data to be resubmitted. AccuWage is for original (Form W-2) files, and AccuW2C is for correction (Form W-2c) files. AccuWage and AccuW2C can be downloaded from www.socialsecurity.gov/employer/accuwage/index.html.

Tip 9: Compress wage-data files using PKZip, WINZip, or another PKZip-compatible compression program before uploading them to the Social Security Administration. Compressing large data files can dramatically reduce transmission time. Do not compress more than one file together.

Tip 10: Do not permit more than 500,000 Forms W-2 per submission. When uploading more than 500,000 Forms W-2, break them up into smaller files and submit each file separately.

Tip 11: Ensure that wage-data submissions do not span multiple files. Each uploaded file must begin with an RA record and end with an RF record. (See MMREF-1 and MMREF-2 for information about MMREF record requirements.)

Tip 12: Display a progress bar to users during file uploads. BSO does not provide a progress bar because the file size is unknown to the Social Security Administration until the upload is complete.

Tip 13: Provide functionality for saving the acknowledgment of receipt and renaming the original file with the filename assigned by the Social Security Administration. These steps will be important for future reference.

System Requirements
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BSO users must have:

	Internet access
	A web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. The user's browser version must support cookies and 128-bit encryption. To work with BSO, the browser must be set to accept cookies. BSO cookies are deleted when the browser is closed.
	Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 5.0 or higher recommended) if the user plans to create Forms W-2 online. This software is needed to view and print Forms W-2 and Form W-3 created using the W-2 Online feature. See the BSO User Handbook for more information about W-2 Online.

Service Interruptions
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If a communications disruption occurs during a file upload, users can determine whether the upload completed by logging on again and selecting View Submission Status / Notice / Error Information from the BSO Home Page. If the submission is not displayed, it will have to be uploaded again. The same submission type (new submission, resubmission, or test) should be selected as the first time.

If a user logs in with a PIN and password and a communications disruption occurs while using W-2 Online, information that the user had finalized by selecting the Continue, New W-2, or Done button will be saved. Saved W-2 Online reports can be retrieved by selecting Resume Unsubmitted W-2s on the BSO Home Page. W-2 Online reports will not be saved for users who log in with a PIN and Social Security number.

Publications & Software
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The Social Security Administration produces the following related publications and software:

	BSO User Handbook - Provides detailed instructions for using BSO features
	MMREF-1 - Provides the record layout for original (Form W-2) data files
	MMREF-2 - Provides the record layout for correction (Form W-2c) data files
	AccuWage - Checks original (Form W-2) data files for MMREF-1 compliance
	AccuW2C - Checks correction (Form W-2c) data files for MMREF-2 compliance

These materials may be downloaded from www.socialsecurity.gov/employer. Because they are updated frequently, be sure you have the latest version before starting any new software development effort involving BSO.

Assistance
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Developers of software which interfaces with BSO may address questions to the appropriate regional Employer Services Liaison Officer. Liason Officer contact information is available by selecting How to Reach Us on www.socialsecurity.gov/employer.

Users of software which interfaces with BSO may obtain assistance by calling the Social Security Administration Employer Reporting Branch at 1-800-772-6270. For TDD/TYY, call 1-800-325-0778