6 End-of-Year Reminders That Save HR Time

As 2025 winds down, HR teams face a familiar challenge: preventable end-of-year cleanup that slows payroll and benefits administration. Address fixes for W‑2s, last‑minute benefits questions, and missing confirmations can quickly snowball into payroll delays and January frustration.

The fastest way to reduce the back-and-forth is to send one short checklist now, then resend it once more right before your internal cutoffs. Use the reminders below, then add your plan rules and payroll deadlines so employees know what’s truly due before December 31.

Here are six reminders HR can use to help employees close out the year strong while reducing avoidable follow-ups. Add your internal deadlines, link to the right forms, and tell employees where to go with questions so updates don’t get stuck in email threads.

HR’s End-of-Year Checklist for Employees

These reminders, courtesy of Shelly Michaels, director, people business partner group at Justworks, can help HR standardize end-of-year communication, reduce back-and-forth and keep updates flowing through the right systems.

1. Verify Personal Info

Ask employees to confirm their personal information is accurate in HR systems before end-of-year processing begins, including:

• Physical address
• Phone number
• Email address, and
• Social Security number.

This is the stuff employees swear is correct until payroll has to fix it. Verifying employee information early reduces W-2 corrections and limits payroll rework tied to reporting errors. It also helps HR meet year-end reporting accuracy requirements and avoid a spike in January follow-ups when forms are already issued.

“Double-checking now can prevent errors that might require tax return corrections later,” says Michaels.

Pro Tip: Build a recurring December task in your HRIS to prompt employees to confirm personal data before W-2 generation begins.

2. Review Tax Withholding Information

Remind employees to review their tax withholding information and update their W-4 if anything has changed this year, including:

• Marriage or divorce
• A new child or dependent
• A second job, and
• A change in household income.

Accurate withholding updates reduce year-end payroll adjustments and help limit employee questions when tax forms are issued. Direct employees to the W-4 update workflow in your payroll or HRIS so changes are captured in the system rather than sent via email.

You can also provide helpful tools, such as the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator.

3. Confirm Final 401(k) Contributions

Encourage employees to review their year-to-date retirement contributions and make any final adjustments before payroll deadlines hit. This helps avoid retroactive corrections and end-of-year contribution disputes that are difficult to fix once the year closes.

You can also remind employees of the 2026 401(k) contribution limit ($24,500), plus the catch-up limit for age 50+ ($8,000), for a total of $32,500.

4. Spend FSA Funds

If employees have a flexible spending account (FSA), remind them to review their remaining balance and plan eligible expenses before year-end. Clear guidance here can reduce forfeitures and limit frustration when unused funds disappear in January.

You may want to include a list of items they can purchase with FSA funds, including: 

• Prescriptions
• Vaccinations
• OTC medications
• Deductibles, and
• Co-payments.

If your plan allows an FSA carryover, up to $680 can roll into 2026, though your plan may set a lower cap. If your plan uses a grace period instead of carryover, eligible expenses must typically be incurred by March 15, 2026.

5. Double-Check PTO Balance 

Ask employees to review their remaining PTO balance and remind them how unused time is handled at year-end. Whether hours roll over, are paid out, or are forfeited depends on policy, and confusion here often leads to follow-up emails and phone calls.

6. Complete Wellness Program Initiatives

Encourage employees to take advantage of any wellness programs, whether it’s completing health screenings, fitness challenges or mental health initiatives that wrap up in December.

Many wellness programs tie completion to perks like stipends or gift cards. Reminding employees now helps prevent disputes in January and reduces follow-up when incentives don’t appear as expected.

Clear, early reminders not only prevent errors but also protect valuable HR time. Standardizing end-of-year outreach with automated checklists and HRIS workflows reduces manual tracking and helps you lock down documentation before the calendar turns.