In the Smartum Plus service, it's a good idea to plan beforehand the distribution of additional benefits. Heep in mind that the additional benefit is distributed to employees based on the Flexible Benefit % setting.
Let’s assume that you want to allocate an additional benefit of €100 to all employees, and the employee can use the benefit for either sports and culture or massage, depending on their choice. You've already distributed benefits this year, but this additional benefit fits within the tax limits for the current year.
Each employee in the Smartum Plus service has a data field called Flexible Benefit %. This percentage determines how much of the flexible benefit distributed in Smartum Plus is available for the user to use.
In many companies, this Flexible Benefit % is 100% for all employees. If this is the case in your company, you can distribute the €100 additional benefit as follows:
- Select Employment Benefits and click Create new Smartum benefit on the page.
- Give the benefit a name (e.g., Rewarding 2024). Choose Tax Year 2024 (default).
- Select the benefit types you want to include in the additional benefit. By default, Sports and Culture and Massage are selected.
- Under Benefit Users, select either All employees or a group you've created if you want to allocate the additional benefit to only a portion of the employees.
- Enter the amount of the benefit under Benefit Amount: 100 €
- Save the benefit and confirm the order.
In some companies, the Flexible Benefit % varies.
For example, part-time employees may receive benefits in proportion to their working hours, or employees who started during the year may receive a prorated benefit for the remainder of the year. If you want to give a €100 additional benefit to everyone, regardless of these factors, follow these steps in the Smartum Plus service:
- Click the Smartum Plus logo to access the My Company view.
- Add a new company. You can use the same details as the company you’ve already added. It's a good idea to add something to the company name to remember that this company is created for rewarding purposes, e.g., Company Ltd – Rewards.
- Select Employees and add employees either individually or by uploading a CSV file. Set the Flexible Benefit % for all employees to 100%.
- Continue with creating the additional benefit:
- Select Employment Benefits and click Create new Smartum benefit on the page.
- Give the benefit a name (e.g., Rewarding 2024). Choose Tax Year 2024 (default).
- Select the benefit types you want to include in the additional benefit. By default, Sports and Culture and Massage are selected.
- Under Benefit Users, select either All employees or a group you’ve created if you want to allocate the additional benefit to only a portion of the employees.
- Enter the benefit amount under Benefit Amount: 100 €
- Save the benefit and confirm the order.
Note that the billing method for a newly created company is automatically set to pre-invoicing. The invoice will be sent immediately after confirming the order via your selected method (email or e-invoice), and the benefits will be available to employees typically the next business day once the payment is registered in Smartum.
When is the additional benefit distributed to employees?
If you have a post-invoicing agreement with Smartum, the additional benefit is distributed to employees as soon as you confirm the benefit. You can prepare the benefit and save it until the confirmation stage, and then confirm the order on the day you want (open the benefit you created by clicking on it, and click Confirm order in the top right corner of the view).
If you have a pre-invoicing agreement with Smartum, you will receive the invoice shortly after confirming the order. Once the payment appears in Smartum, the benefits will be distributed to employees typically the next business day. Therefore, you can influence the distribution timing by paying the invoice at the right time.
A scheduling feature for benefit distribution will be available in Smartum Plus soon! If you want information about updates, join the mailing list [here].
How long is the additional benefit valid?
If you have a post-invoicing agreement with Smartum, the benefits are valid until the end of the calendar year.
NOTE TO POST-INVOICING CUSTOMERS!
When distributing additional benefits for the end of the year, encourage recipients to purchase an OmaLahjakortti (Own Gift Card) right away with the additional benefit! This will extend the benefit's usage period until the end of March of the following year.
If you have a pre-invoicing agreement with Smartum, the distributed benefits are valid for 12 months from the distribution date.