Business Terms

Term

Definition

Employer

 An Employer is any individual, partnership, association, corporation, governmental entity, or other type of organization (including non-profits, religious organizations, and agricultural entities) which has in its employment one or more individuals performing services within its respective state (South Carolina).

Employer Portal

The Employer portal is a Self-Service region of the SUITS application that Employers can access to perform various UI transactions.

Contributory

Contributory is a term used to describe an Employer that contributes to the UI tax fund. Most Employers are Contributory Employers; however, non-profits and governmental Employers have the option to choose to be Reimbursable Employers.

Reimbursable

Reimbursable is a term used to describe an Employer that reimburses the UI Tax fund for benefits paid out to a claimant versus contributing taxes routinely. Most Employers are Contributory Employers; however, Non-Profits and Governmental Employers have the option to choose to be Reimbursable Employers.

Group Account

A Joint Account is an agreement between three or more Reimbursable, Non-Profit Employers. The Employers create a group account for the purposes of sharing the financial burden of a Security payment.

Joint Account

A Joint Account is an agreement between three or more Contributory Employers. The Employers create a joint account for the purposes of reducing their individual tax rate. The combined tax rate applicable to Joint Account Employers is calculated based upon the collective group’s taxable wages.

Security

Security is payment made by a non-profit, Reimbursable Employer made to protect the South Carolina’s Unemployment Trust Fund in case the Employer defaults on paying back Unemployment benefits paid out to claimants.

If the Employer does default in reimbursement, its Security will be used and the UI agency will change its reporting method from Reimbursable to Contributory.

Agent

An Agent is a third-party Administrator who has an agreement with an Employer (client) to perform certain UI roles on behalf of the client.