Pre-approval is a functionality within SmartPay™, which allows the automatic processing of all applications submitted by employees based on data provided by the client in advance. The best thing about pre-approval is that no additional action is required by the client; all we need is the relevant employee data to enable us to make the appropriate decision for each application.
How does it work?
Salary sacrifice benefits
For our salary sacrifice benefits such as RG Cycle to Work and RG Childcare Vouchers, we run an additional National Minimum Wage check, which ensures no employee will be driven below the National Minimum Wage for their age. For the auto-approval to work, we need the following data for each employee in advance:
- Annual Gross Salary.
- Date of Birth.
To be as accurate as possible, we recommend also providing the following data as well:
- Weekly hours – If this information is not provided, we use a default value of 40.
- Weeks worked per year – If this information is not provided, we use a default value of 52.
- Other gross deduction – If this information is not provided, we default this value to 0 (zero).
Note that if an application is below or very close to National Minimum Wage or the employee is under 18 years old, we won't auto-reject the application but will leave it pending for employers to review. This is not of frequent occurrence, and the very same checks are applied as part of the application process in any of the salary sacrifice products so employees should not be allowed to apply for more than they can afford in the first place.
Payroll benefits
For Reward Gateway's payroll benefits, such as SmartTech™ and Holiday Trading, pre-approval is recommended as it enables an instant order processing. It means, for example, that employees can go into their nearest Currys store minutes after applying for their SmartTech™ benefit.
Additionally, clients can use the optional feature of SmartPay™ Limit, which helps the client to plan their cash flows for each period as they wish.
SmartPay™ Limit is a pot that each employee has available where they can decide how to best distribute limits across all SmartPay™ products. For example, the client can choose to set a £1000 SmartPay™ limit for each employee, who can then choose exactly how much they wish to spend on RG Cycle to Work or SmartTech™. Employers can also create individual limits for their workforce, or set a default for all staff members.
Applications from employees who are under 18-years old will be flagged and won't be eligible for auto-approval, allowing clients to review the application manually. As a catch-all measure, employees whose DOB is not added to the system also won't be eligible for auto-approval.