As a reminder, a presidential executive order was signed on Aug. 8, 2020, to suspend Old Age, Survivors, and Disabilities Insurance tax deductions because of COVID-19. The period of deferment was Sept. 1 through Dec. 31, 2020.    

The Forest Service’s payroll provider, the USDA National Finance Center, mailed Demand Notice of Payment letters with the deadline of Jan. 3, 2022, to employees who separated (terminated, resigned, retired), were placed into a non-pay status or had insufficient funds to collect the OASDI taxes. 

Additional information about the deferred OASDI taxes is available on HRM’s pay website.

Below is the latest information about payments for the deferred OASDI taxes.  

Permanent Employees

Permanent employees who have remained on the payrolls, with no break in service or placement into non-pay status, continued to have the deferred OASDI taxes automatically collected from their paycheck each pay period. If an employee has an outstanding debt after Jan. 1, 2022 (end of Pay Period 25), NFC will send out a Demand Notice for Payment to collect the remaining funds due. It is important employees pay the debt timely to prevent interest, penalties and impacts to credit scores.

Seasonal/Temporary Employees who received a Demand Notice of Payment

Seasonal/Temporary employees must pay the deferred OASDI taxes by the end of December 2021.   

If an employee does not pay the outstanding balance, it will become delinquent. The outstanding debt will be referred to the Treasury Offset Program and Bureau of Fiscal services for collection. This will impact an employee’s credit rating and additional administrative and penalties, interest, and fees will be added to the outstanding balance. The Internal Revenue Service may also add tax penalties.

To Make Payment in Full to NFC

Any employee who elects to pay the outstanding balance of the deferred taxes in full can do so by using one of the following avenues: 

• Pay online at Pay.gov; or
• Mail a check along with a copy of the signed demand notice to:  
  • USDA, National Finance Center, Administrative Collections
  • P.O. Box 790342
  • St. Louis, MO 63179-0342

Help is available

Open an HR Help case:

• Call: 1-877-372-7248, Press 2
• Email: hrm_contact_center@usda.gov
• Self-Service: ConnectHR, then click HR Help
• For detailed instructions, visit the HR Help How-to Add a Case Guide.