Payroll Tax Specialist

Homebase; Georgia; Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

401(k) with match

Medical coverage

Dental & vision

Paid time off

AI tool access

Parental leave

Life insurance

Disability coverage

Remote-friendly / Work from anywhere

Job summary

Homebase is seeking a Payroll Tax Specialist to join our Payroll Care Team. You will investigate payroll tax notices, resolve standard to moderately complex issues, and partner with Payroll Operations to move cases to resolution while documenting findings and updating guidance.

You will grow payroll tax expertise, contribute to process improvements, and use AI to research issues, improve documentation, and enhance customer communications.

Qualifications

• 2 to 3 years of experience in payroll, payroll tax, accounting operations, or a related field.
• Hands-on experience with tax notices, payroll corrections, registrations, or similar operational work.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to follow structured processes.

Responsibilities

• Review incoming payroll tax notices, investigate root cause, and determine the right next step using established processes and judgment.
• Cross-reference notices against customer tax profiles, payroll history, and filing records to understand what caused the issue.
• Resolve standard and moderately complex notice scenarios independently and elevate higher-risk cases with a clear summary and recommendation.
• Draft agency correspondence and penalty abatement requests, and maintain the documentation trail for each case.
• Document learnings and update templates and guidance to handle recurring cases faster and more consistently.
• Flag recurring issues and patterns to senior teammates for product/process improvements.

Job description

Hi, Future Homie!

At Homebase, you’ll join a team that’s bold, fast-moving, and obsessed with helping small businesses thrive. We build with empathy, act with urgency, and take big swings that drive real-world impact. Here, every Homie shows up to raise the bar, support one another, and celebrate wins as a team.

We’re not just building an app—we’re building unstoppable teams. So what do you say, are you in?

Your Impact Starts Here

We're building something new at Homebase: a dedicated Payroll Tax function within our Payroll Care Team focused on helping customers navigate payroll tax notices, filing questions, and account issues.

As a Payroll Tax Specialist, you’ll help customers when payroll tax gets complicated. You'll investigate incoming tax notices, identify what happened, and resolve most issues independently using established processes and your growing expertise. For complex or higher-risk cases, you'll bring a clear recommendation and partner with senior teammates on the path forward.

You’ll work directly with customers and closely with our Payroll Care and Payroll Operations teams. Along the way, you’ll deepen your payroll tax expertise, strengthen our documentation, and help us spot recurring issues that can make our processes and product better.

You’ll also use AI and automation to research issues faster, create clearer documentation, and make customer communication more effective, then measure the impact and share what works.

This is a role for someone ready to grow from learning the craft to owning it. You don't need to know every agency rule or every tax scenario. You do bring solid payroll tax fundamentals, strong attention to detail, sound judgment about when to escalate, and a drive to get better every day.

These are the key ways you’ll contribute and create impact in this role:

Drive Tax Notice Resolution: Primary Focus

• Review incoming payroll tax notices, investigate root cause, and determine the right next step using established processes and your own judgment.

• Cross-reference notices against customer tax profiles, payroll history, and filing records to understand what caused the issue.

• Resolve standard and moderately complex notice scenarios independently, and elevate novel, higher-risk, or high-dollar cases with a clear summary and recommendation.

• Communicate clearly with customers about what we're investigating, what information we need, and what they can expect next.

• Partner with Payroll Operations and other internal teammates to move tax issues to resolution and follow through on every open action.

• Track open notices, customer communications, next steps, and resolution timelines accurately in our ticketing system.

• Draft agency correspondence and penalty abatement requests, and maintain the documentation trail for each case.

• Document what you learn and update templates and guidance so recurring cases are handled faster and more consistently.

• Flag recurring issues and patterns to senior teammates so the broader team can investigate process or product improvements.

Drive Quarterly and Year-End Readiness

• Help customers prepare for quarterly filings by explaining key steps, gathering missing information, and resolving common blockers before deadlines.

• Review accounts for missing agency IDs, tax rates, TPA/POA information, and other common filing requirements.

• Identify accounts that need additional attention and elevate potential risks to the appropriate teammate.

• Support customers with quarter-end filing and variance questions.

• Conduct year-end account reviews and flag missing or inconsistent information, such as owner or shareholder changes, that could affect payroll tax filings.

• Maintain accurate customer and case documentation throughout quarterly and year-end cycles.

Deepen Your Registration and Compliance Knowledge

• Build working knowledge of federal, state, and local payroll tax requirements through hands‑on experience, training, and research.

• Research agency requirements using approved, authoritative sources and internal resources.

• Help customers understand agency‑sourced registration requirements, deadlines, and filing processes using established Homebase guidance.

• Help maintain internal documentation covering filing frequencies, TPA/POA requirements, agency IDs, registration processes, and other jurisdiction‑specific requirements.

• Support compliance calendar maintenance and help make sure required customer information is identified and tracked.

• Recognize when a customer question falls outside established guidance and elevate rather than providing tax or legal advice.

Help Keep Customer Accounts Healthy

• Review customer accounts for warning signs, including blocked accounts, missing agency information, outdated tax rates, or unresolved filing issues.

• Flag potential risks to the appropriate teammate before they become larger customer problems.

• Partner with the broader Payroll Care Team to help close the loop on open customer issues.

• Share recurring questions, friction points, and customer feedback so we can continue improving how we support customers.

• Help newer teammates learn established processes as you build your own depth.

The Foundation for Success - These are the experiences and strengths that will set you up for success in this role:

• 2 to 3 years of experience in payroll, payroll tax, accounting operations, or a related field, ideally at a payroll provider or payroll SaaS company.

• Working understanding of payroll and payroll taxes, including withholding, FUTA/SUI, quarterly and annual filings, and W-2/W-2C corrections.

• Hands‑on experience with tax notices, payroll corrections, registrations, or similar operational work.

• Strong attention to detail and the ability to work through structured processes accurately.

• Curious problem solver: you want to understand why something happened, know how to find reliable information, and aren't afraid to ask questions.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills: you can take complicated information and make it easier for a customer to understand.

• Comfortable communicating directly with customers, including conversations where the answer requires additional investigation.

• Organized and dependable: you can manage multiple open cases, keep accurate records, and follow through on commitments.

• Comfortable working with spreadsheets and learning payroll, ticketing, reporting, and other operational tools.

• Good judgment about when you can move an issue forward independently and when you need to elevate.

• Interest in deepening your payroll tax expertise. CPP or FPC certification is not required, but progress toward one is a plus.

• Curiosity about AI and automation, with examples of improving how you work.

• AI Expectations

  • Use approved AI tools to support research, organize information, summarize case details, improve documentation, and draft customer communications.

  • Rework repeatable parts of your workflow into AI‑enabled templates or processes, and measure the impact on resolution time or customer outcomes.

  • Use AI to make your day‑to‑day faster while applying your own judgment and verifying important information.

  • Share useful prompts, experiments, and learnings with your teammates so we can learn together.

  • Know where AI is useful, and where payroll tax expertise, trusted sources, and human judgment need to lead.

The Homie Way - These principles guide everything we do from how we work and make decisions to how we show up for each other.

• Be Customer Obsessed – Solve problems with empathy and creativity.

• Move Fast, Learn Fast – Experiment, take action, and grow every day.

• Own Your Impact – Think big, focus on what matters, and make decisions you stand behind.

• Master Your Craft – Excellence fuels impact—show up, step up, and make your mark.

• Win Together – Put goals over roles, lead with trust, and connect to our mission and each other.

What We Offer

• Ownership & Financial Security: Stock options + 401(k) with 4% match

• Comprehensive Healthcare: Medical, dental, and vision coverage + FSA options

• Paid Time Off: Flexible PTO + company holidays + designated focus periods

• AI access, for real: We invest in builders and believe that curiosity shouldn't have a paywall. That means you'll have access to paid AI tools with minimal restrictions, so you can build, experiment, and level up your craft.

• Family Support: Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave (after 6 months of service)

• Protection Plans: Life insurance + short/long-term disability coverage

• Work Your Way: Work From Anywhere Month + meeting‑free weeks yearly

• Workspace Perks: Meals provided, commuter benefits, team offsites, and Customer Days

• Our Hybrid Rhythm: We believe collaboration drives impact. That’s why Monday‑Thursday are our required in‑office days—a time to move faster as a team, build deeper connections, make better decisions, and build together.

What to Expect During the Interview Process

• Meet the Talent Acquisition team, Ivana L.

• Meet the Hiring Manager, Jess B.

• Participate in a Case study and panel presentation in our Houston Office

• Meet with the Director of Customer Experience, Hamza K.

• Background Check + Offer Stage

• Welcome to the team, Homie

Belonging at Homebase - We're committed to fostering a welcoming space where every Homie can be their full self.

Hey, We’re Homebase

Homebase is the everything app for hourly teams—built to simplify the day‑to‑day and superpower local businesses. With tools for scheduling, time clocks, payroll, communication, HR, and more, we help teams stay connected and in control. Today, over 150,000 small (but mighty) businesses rely on us to make work radically easier. Together, we’ve tracked over a billion hours for 2M+ workers—and we’re just getting started.

At Homebase, we celebrate diversity and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We welcome all candidates and do not discriminate based on any legally protected status. If you need accommodations during the hiring process, please let us know—we’re committed to ensuring fair and equitable access for all.