Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents and Beneficiaries

Activate User's Guide
Version
2025.4
ft:lastEdition
2025-10-14
Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents and Beneficiaries

Use the Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries wizard to populate employees' Health, Life & Disability, Reimbursement, and Retirement benefit elections. All benefit elections for employees, dependents, and beneficiaries are included in this single workflow.

Note: This wizard is available for all countries.

Important Notes

Note the following:

  • To reduce time and effort and make it easier to validate the data, use this wizard to load employee and dependent/beneficiary elections. This wizard also makes it easy to make data corrections and reload information.
  • To prevent rework and save time, make sure that you’ve completed all of the prerequisites before using this wizard.
  • Activate shares all of your mappings across all applicable environments so you don't have to reconfigure each time you use a different environment. If the changes you make in one environment invalidate the mappings in another environment, Activate informs you when you access a wizard with invalid mappings that need to be updated.
  • Your Implementation Consultant can help you with any questions.

Before you begin

The following must have taken place:

  • Published all benefit plans.
  • Verified that the plan year is correct for all benefit plans.
  • Verified that the participant definitions are defined for the qualifying participants.
  • Confirmed that all Benefit Option Names are unique.
  • Completed the Payroll Mapping for all benefit plans.
  • Turned on the “Is Generated” setting for all earnings to be used in the Payroll Mapping.
  • Added the Earnings and Deduction Schedules for all Earnings and Deductions being used in the Payroll Mapping.
  • Defined the Deduction Limits for benefits that require a limit (Retirement or Reimbursement).
  • Confirmed that the Pay Calendar is configured to include all pay dates within the Benefit Plan Year.
  • For Life Insurance Plans that require imputed income calculations, configured the Pay Calendars to include all Pay Dates for two Benefit Plan Years.

Messages: Error, Warning, and Information

Activate sorts each generated message by severity:

Error codes

Actively incompatible with the data in Dayforce. If you have a data error, you must resolve the error before you can complete the installation.

Warning codes

Indicate nonstandard setup that could potentially cause an error in Dayforce. For example, if an earning code is defined as Hours x Rate and the data is amount only, the system creates a warning. However, you can still import the data into the system.

Informational codes

A notable occurrence of data in the system. For example, an informational note shows if codes are dropped from the YTD import.

Tasks

To confirm the prerequisites and indicate employee assignment of required properties:
  1. In Activate Central, click Load Your Data. The Load Your Data wizards are shown.
  2. Click Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries.
  3. On the What you need to confirm before you start page, review the prerequisites and make sure that you have:
    • Verified that the plan year is correct for all benefit plans.
    • Verified the participant definitions are defined for the qualifying participants.
    • Defined the Deduction Limit for benefits that require a limit (Retirement or Reimbursement).
    • Set up the required Relationship Types under HR Admin Relationship Types.
    • Confirmed that the Is Child, Is Spouse, and Is Legal Partnership parameters have been updated.
  4. Select all checkboxes to confirm that you’ve completed the tasks.
  5. Click Next.
  6. On the Properties page, indicate if the employees have been assigned all additional properties required for: 1. Determining employee eligibility for a benefit plan or 2. Determining an employee's rate level for a benefit plan. Select one of the following:
    • Yes
    • No
    • Our benefit plans and rates do not require additional properties
  7. Click Next.
To assign fields to employees:

If you clicked No on the Properties page, you must assign fields to the employees.

  1. On the Field Selector page, complete the questions to assign fields to the employees.

    You must answer all of the questions on the page. Based on your answers, more questions might be shown to capture more detail.

    Note: For information on each question, see the Questions section (below).

  2. Click Next.
  3. On the Value Selector page, complete the questions to select the employees you want to assign and select the values to assign.

    You must answer all of the questions on the page. Based on your answers, more questions might be shown to capture more detail.

    Note: For information on each question, see the Questions section (below).

  4. Click Next. The Mass Assignment Review page shows the employee properties that you assigned.
  5. Review the information to confirm that everything looks correct.
  6. If you need to make any changes, make them either in the grid or update the template on your computer and upload the updated file.

    Note: If you need to add a new row in the grid, click New.

  7. When you complete the changes, click Download File and save a copy of the MassAssignmentDataFile.xls to your computer so you can refer to the information later.
  8. Click Done & Install.

    The Load page opens with a list of the steps to complete and an estimate of how long the installation usually takes. During the installation, the current step in the process is bolded so you can monitor the progress.

    Important: If someone is signed directly in to Dayforce and potentially applying manual configuration, Activate shows a warning at Done & Install. Don’t continue with the Activate installation if users are actively applying configuration changes. Users’ changes might be lost if a failure occurs during the Activate installation. Download the User Report and follow up with the team members before you continue with the Activate wizard.

  9. Click one of the following:
    • Add Email and enter your email address to be notified when the installation process ends instead of waiting for it to finish.
    • Next when the installation is complete.

    Activate Central opens with the Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries wizard now in the In Progress state.

To complete and upload the Employee Benefit Election template:

If you clicked Yes or Our benefit plans and rates do not require additional properties on the Properties page, you must complete and upload the Employee Benefit Election template.

  1. On the Benefit Elections page, click Download.
  2. Select the location where you want to save the template document.
  3. Open the EmployeeBenefitElectionTemplate.xlsx template on your computer.
  4. On the EmployeeBenefitElection tab, complete all columns with the data for all employees in the organization.

    Note: The Activate release version shows in cell B3 on the Instructions tab of the template. With this information, you can determine the version of Activate that you were using when you downloaded the template.

    Note: Instructions for populating the fields are in the Employee Benefit Election Template Fields section (below) and on the Instructions tab of the template.

    When you load two benefit elections for the same dependent with different effective dates, Activate matches the corresponding employee elections.

    Note: You can’t load two benefit elections for the same:
    - Employee on the same effective date and map both to the same option in Dayforce.
    - Dependent on the same effective date and map both to the same option in Dayforce.

  5. Click Save and close the template.

    You can use any file name for the template you upload. The file must be an Excel or CSV (Comma-Separated Value) document and contain the data in the required format.

    Important: Don’t change the name of the tab in the template. Activate uses the tab name to validate that the correct template is being uploaded. In addition, don’t change the column headings.

  6. On the Benefit Elections page, click Upload.
  7. Go to your completed Employee Benefit Election template in the location where you saved it.
  8. Click Open.

    The Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries wizard validates the data.

    Note: If you uploaded a file that resulted in warning validations only (there were no errors), a yellow bar shows across the bottom of the page that states the validation completed with warnings. Review the file before continuing. You can click View All Errors to download the error file containing the list of warnings so you can address them or you can click Next to continue.

    Note: If the uploaded file has errors, a Validation Failed message shows in red at the bottom of the page. You must correct the errors in the file on your computer and upload the file again.

    Note: When you upload an Excel file, Activate includes the name of the uploaded file into the name of the XML file it generates and loads to the Dayforce File Server. The format of the generated XML file name is <NamespaceName>_<Import Type>_<file name provided>_YYY-MM-DD_HHMM. This information makes it easier to audit files later.

  9. Click Next.
To complete and upload the Employee Dependent Benefits Data template:

Note: If you don’t want to upload dependent or beneficiary data now, click Skip. For example, if you’re working on Retirement or Reimbursement plans that don’t have dependents or beneficiaries, there’s no need to upload dependent or beneficiary information.

Note: If you provide dependent elections, you must also provide employee elections.

  1. On the Dependent/Beneficiary Elections page, click Download.
  2. Select the location where you want to save the template document.
  3. Open the DependentBeneficiaryBenefitElectionTemplate.xlsx template on your computer.
  4. On the DependentBeneficiaryData tab, complete all columns with the data for all employees in the organization.

    Note: Instructions for populating the fields are in the Dependent Beneficiary Benefit Election Template Fields section (below) and on the Instructions tab of the template.

    Note: The dependent benefit elections don’t require effective dates. Activate takes the effective dates for the dependent benefit elections directly from the latest employee benefit election for the same option. If you upload effective dates, Activate ignores them and you don’t get an error.

  5. Click Save and close the template.

    You can use any file name for the template you upload. The document must be an Excel or CSV (comma-separated value) document and contain the data in the required format.

    Important: Don’t change the name of the tab in the template. Activate uses the tab name to validate that the correct template is being uploaded. In addition, don’t change the column headings.

  6. On the Dependent/Beneficiary Elections page, click Upload.
  7. Go to your completed Dependent Beneficiary Benefit Elections template in the location where you saved it.
  8. Click Open.

    The Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries wizard validates the data.

    When importing dependents, the National ID Number (NINO) information isn’t required for UK employees.

    How the Dependent SSN/SIN field determines what happens
    If the Dependent SSN/SIN field is...Activate...
    Left blank Shows a warning on the Download report. The warning states that the Dependent SSN/SIN/NINO value shouldn’t be left blank (for <dep name>), and to continue with processing. It’s recommended for benefit-related processes.
    Contains any valueValidates the NINO format.

    Note: When you upload an Excel file, Activate includes the name of the uploaded file into the name of the XML file it generates and loads to the Dayforce File Server. The format of the generated XML file name is <NamespaceName>_<Import Type>_<file name provided>_YYY-MM-DD_HHMM. This information makes it easier to audit files later.

    Note: If the file you uploaded has any errors, a Validation Failed message shows in red at the bottom of the page. You must correct the errors in the file on your computer and upload the file again.

  9. Click Next.
To map the benefit plans to the appropriate categories:
  1. On the Questions page, review the items on the page.

    Items that aren’t assigned to a category are shown in the Uncategorized category.

  2. If a benefit item is in the Uncategorized section or in the wrong category, select the benefit item and drag it to the dark gray box under the appropriate category. The categories include:
    • Health: This category includes Medical, Dental, Vision, and other similar benefit options.
    • Life & Disability: This category includes Basic Live and AD&D, Optional Life and AD&D, Short or Long Term Disability, and other similar benefit options.
    • Reimbursement: This category includes Health Savings Accounts, Flexible Health or Dependent Care Accounts, Parking, Transportation, and other similar benefit options.
    • Retirement: This category includes 401(k), 457B, Pension Plans, RPP, RRSP, and other similar benefit options.

    Note: To select and move multiple items at the same time, click Ctrl+Shift.

    Note: To save time, Activate groups all option records by Plan Name into one tile per plan. You only need to categorize one time per plan name.

    Note: If you uploaded election file records with the same value for Plan Name and different values for the Option/Tier Name, Activate bundles all records with the same Plan Name into one tile for mapping.

    Note: If you previously mapped options to a certain Plan Name (for example, Dental US) and load a new data file with the same Plan Name (Dental US) and a different option name, the tile for mapping shows under the category that the previous options were mapped to (for example, Health).

  3. Repeat this process for any remaining benefit plans that need to be mapped to the appropriate category.

    Note: You must map all of the benefit items on the Questions page to continue.

  4. Click Done.
  5. For each Health Benefit Plan shown, select the drop-down list in the Selected Plan/Option column and select the Dayforce HCM code that most closely matches the plan.
  6. Click Next.
  7. Repeat this process for the following benefit plans, as appropriate:
    • Life & Disability
    • Reimbursement
    • Retirement
  8. Click Done.
To manage mapping errors and warnings:

The Validate page shows the details of any errors and warnings that have been generated.

Note: You must resolve all errors to continue.

  1. On the Validate page, review any errors and warnings.
  2. To correct errors and warnings:
    1. Click Download File to download the Benefit Elections Validation report containing the generated errors and warnings.
    2. Select the location on your computer where you saved the template document earlier.
    3. Open the document on your computer.
    4. Make the corrections.
    5. Click Save and close the template.
    6. On the Validate page, click Upload File.
    7. Go to the completed template on your computer.
    8. Click Re-Validate.
  3. Repeat these steps if necessary.
  4. Click Download the current benefit mappings file to verify which plans and options in Dayforce need to be edited to pass validations.

    You might want to save this file to your computer for reference.

  5. If you want to return to the previous page, click Back.
  6. Click Next to review the data.
To review the summary information:

The Summary page shows a table containing what is to be loaded, including the Benefit Plan Type, Country, Dayforce HCM Benefit Option Count, # Elections, # Dependent Elections, and # Benefit Elections.

  1. To download benefit election counts per option for verification and audits, click Download Employee Benefit Elections Summary.

    The Summary report further breaks down each option by the option name and the election count. The report includes tabs for Employee Benefit Elections, Dependent Benefit Elections, and Beneficiary Benefit Elections.

    Note: If no dependent or beneficiary elections are loaded, a message shows on those tabs to indicate that.

    Note: If you don’t complete the installation before you exit the Summary page, you’ll return to the Validate page the next time you access this wizard.

  2. Click Next. Activate prompts you to verify the User Activity report in Dayforce.
To install election information:

When the election information is complete in Activate, you must install it in Dayforce.

  1. On the Install page, click Done & Install.

    A dialog box states that you’re about to load Benefit Elections and to confirm that all benefit configuration, including payroll mappings, have been completed before loading.

  2. Click one of the following:
    • Yes to continue with the installation.
    • No to cancel the installation and return to the Validate page.

    Important: If someone is signed directly in to Dayforce and potentially applying manual configuration, Activate shows a warning at Done & Install. Don’t continue with the Activate installation if users are actively applying configuration changes. Users’ changes might be lost if a failure occurs during the Activate installation. Download the User Report and follow up with the team members before you continue with the Activate wizard.

    During the installation, the current step in the process shows in bold text so you can monitor the progress.

  3. Click one of the following:

    • Add Email and enter your email address to be notified when the installation process ends instead of waiting for it to finish.
    • Next when the installation is complete.
  4. Activate prompts you to verify the User Activity report in Dayforce.

    Activate Central opens with the name of the Wizard now shown in green text and a green checkmark to the left of the wizard’s name. The current day, date, and time of completion are included, along with your name as the user who completed the wizard. The environment in which the installation was applied (Stage, Config, or Train) also shows.

    Note: If you want to add more employee benefit election information, click I want to add more.

Results

Fields populated in Dayforce

The data uploaded from the Employee Benefit Election template populates the fields on the following pages in Dayforce.

Note: You must select an employee if you haven’t already done so.

Dayforce fields populated by the Employee Benefit Election template
Field in Template Field in Dayforce Page in Dayforce
Employee Identifier Employee Reference / Number Employee (People icon)

 

 
First Name First Name
Last Name Last Name
Benefit Plan Name Name Benefit Elections
(People icon > Benefits >
Benefit Elections)

 
Benefit Option/Tier Name Option
Effective Start Date Effective From
Effective End Date Effective To
Historical Coverage Start Date Coverage Date(s)
(visible when you click an election for details)

 
Amount Coverage Amount Benefit Elections
(People icon > Benefits >
Benefit Elections)
Coverage Multiplier Coverage Multiplier
Employee Contribution Percent Employee Contribution
Employer Contribution Percent Employer Contribution
Evidence of Insurability (EOI) Status EOI Status Manage Evidence of Insurability (EOI)
(People icon > Benefits > Benefit
Elections > Requested Coverage field)
Evidence of Insurability (EOI)
Requested Coverage Amount 		Requested Coverage

The data uploaded from the Dependent Beneficiary Benefit Election template populates the fields on the following pages in Dayforce.

Note: You must select an employee if you haven’t already done so.

Dayforce fields populated by the Dependent Beneficiary Benefit Election template
Field in Template Field in Dayforce Page in Dayforce
Employee Identifier Employee Reference / Number

Employee (People icon)

 

 
First Name First Name
Last Name Last Name

Dependent/Beneficiary First Name

First Name

Dependents and Beneficiaries page

(People icon > Benefits > Dependents and Beneficiaries)

 

 

 

Dependent/Beneficiary Last Name

Last Name

Dependent Date of Birth

Birth Date

Dependent SSN/SIN

National ID

Dependent Gender

Gender

(only if the Dependent checkbox is selected)

Confidential Information

(Benefits > Dependents and Beneficiaries > Confidential Information)

Dependent/Beneficiary Relationship Type

Relationship Type

Dependents and Beneficiaries page
(People icon > Benefits > Dependents and Beneficiaries)

Is the Dependent a Tobacco User/Smoker?

Tobacco/Smoker Status

(only if the Dependent checkbox is selected)

Confidential Information

(Benefits > Dependents and Beneficiaries > Confidential Information)

Is the Dependent a Student?

Student (checkbox)

(only if the Dependent checkbox is selected)

Is the Dependent Disabled?

Disabled (checkbox)

(only if the Dependent checkbox is selected)

Is the Person a Dependent?

Dependent (checkbox)

Dependents and Beneficiaries page
(People icon > Benefits > Dependents and Beneficiaries

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Benefit Plan Name

 Used to determine the plan that the dependent or beneficiary is associated with.

Benefit Option/Tier Name

 Used to determine the option that the dependent or beneficiary is associated with.

Beneficiary Designated Percentage

Percentage (Coverage tab)

Is the person a Beneficiary?

Beneficiary (checkbox)
Beneficiary Type (Coverage tab)

Dependent's Primary Country

Country

Dependent Primary Address

Address Line 1

Dependent Primary Address 2

Address Line 2

Dependent Primary Address 3

Address Line 3

Dependent Primary City

City

Dependent Primary State or Province

State / Province

Dependent Primary Postal Code

Zip / Postal Code

Dependent Primary County

County

Effective Start Date of the Address

Effective Start

File generated by the Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents, and Beneficiaries wizard

After completing the Benefit Elections for Employees, Dependents and Beneficiaries wizard, a single import file is automatically generated and placed on the customer's FTP site.

HR Import

  • FTP Subdirectory: BenefitElectionsImport
  • Filename: <Namespace>-BenefitElectionsImport-EmpBenElect <Excel filename of employee election file>-<DateTime>.xml
For an example illustrating how Activate translates the template data to XML, click here.
Copy 
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
-<EmployeeImport>
    -<Employee>
        <XRefCode>3611</XRefCode>
        -<BenefitOption>
            <OptionXrefCode>ESP_DENTAL_US</OptionXrefCode>
            <ElectionDate>2021-01-01</ElectionDate>
            <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
        </BenefitOption>
        -<BenefitOption>
            <OptionXrefCode>BASIC_LIFE_75K_US</OptionXrefCode>
            <ElectionDate>2021-01-01</ElectionDate>
            <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
        </BenefitOption>
        -<Dependents>
            <FirstName>Andrew</FirstName>
            <LastName>Wilkins</LastName>
            <RelationshipTypeXrefCode>PARENT</RelationshipTypeXrefCode>
            <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
            <IsTobaccoUser>false</IsTobaccoUser>
            <IsStudent>false</IsStudent>
            <IsDisabled>false</IsDisabled>
            <IsDependent>false</IsDependent>
            <IsBeneficiary>true</IsBeneficiary>
            -<DependentOptions>
                <OptionXrefCode>BASIC_LIFE_75K_US</OptionXrefCode>
                <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
                <BeneficiaryPercentage>50.000</BeneficiaryPercentage>
                <BeneficiaryIsContingent>true</BeneficiaryIsContingent>
            </DependentOptions>
        </Dependents>
        -<Dependents>
            <FirstName>Ranjana</FirstName>
            <LastName>Wilkins</LastName>
            <RelationshipTypeXrefCode>PARENT</RelationshipTypeXrefCode>
            <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
            <IsTobaccoUser>false</IsTobaccoUser>
            <IsStudent>false</IsStudent>
            <IsDisabled>false</IsDisabled>
            <IsDependent>false</IsDependent>
            <IsBeneficiary>true</IsBeneficiary>
            -<DependentOptions>
                <OptionXrefCode>BASIC_LIFE_75K_US</OptionXrefCode>
                <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
                <BeneficiaryPercentage>50.000</BeneficiaryPercentage>
                <BeneficiaryIsContingent>true</BeneficiaryIsContingent>
            </DependentOptions>
        </Dependents>
        -<Dependents>
            <FirstName>Rose</FirstName>
            <LastName>Adario</LastName>
            <BirthDate>1988-03-31</BirthDate>
            <Gender>F</Gender>
            <RelationshipTypeXrefCode>SPOUSE</RelationshipTypeXrefCode>
            <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
            <IsTobaccoUser>false</IsTobaccoUser>
            <IsStudent>false</IsStudent>
            <IsDisabled>false</IsDisabled>
            <IsDependent>true</IsDependent>
            <IsBeneficiary>true</IsBeneficiary>
            -<DependentOptions>
                <OptionXrefCode>ESP_DENTAL_US</OptionXrefCode>
                <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
            </DependentOptions>
            -<DependentOptions>
                <OptionXrefCode>BASIC_LIFE_75K_US</OptionXrefCode>
                <EffectiveStart>2021-01-01</EffectiveStart>
                <BeneficiaryPercentage>100.000</BeneficiaryPercentage>
                <BeneficiaryIsContingent>false</BeneficiaryIsContingent>
            </DependentOptions>
        </Dependents>
    </Employee>
</EmployeeImport>

Activate also generates the following report to help with Employee Benefit Elections validation.

  • FTP Subdirectory: BenefitElectionsImport/ActivateValidationReports
  • Filename: <Namespace>- BenefitElectionsImportValidationReports-<DateTimeStart> - <DateTimeEnd>.xlsx

Next steps

Complete the next wizard, as appropriate.

Templates

All templates have the same basic structure:

  • Instructions tab: Helps you understand the purpose of the data and complete the fields in the template.
  • Data tab: Contains headers for the data to be included in the template. The headers remain the same, but you can change the column order. If you add more columns, Activate ignores them.

All number ranges in the templates include the numbers at both ends of the range.

Employee Benefit Election template fields

For information on the fields in the template, click here.
Employee Identifier (Required)
Field information for the Employee Identifier field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
1 Alphanumeric. Unique value between 1–9 characters

Enables the system to identify employees uniquely. Use the same number assigned to the employee in the Getting Started HR data loads.

Note: Upon upload of the template data, Activate converts any lowercase alpha characters found in the Employee Identifier field to uppercase.

3241245
000000006
abc123499

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

First Name (Required)
Field information for the First Name field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
2 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Legal first name of the employee. The value provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

Note: Activate‘ compares the First Name and the Last Name with the Employee Identifier in Dayforce. If they don’t match, Activate shows an error message that states that the data is being loaded incorrectly and to check the source data.

 Joe

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Last Name (Required)
Field information for the Last Name field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
3 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Legal last name of the employee. The value provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

Note: Activate‘ compares the First Name and the Last Name with the Employee Identifier in Dayforce. If they don’t match, Activate shows an error message that states that the data is being loaded incorrectly and to check the source data.

 Smith

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Benefit Plan Name (Required)
Field information for the Benefit Plan Name field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
4 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Additional required data elements for

Health Plans
- Effective Start Date

Life & Disability Plans
- Effective Start Date
- Amount (Coverage Amount)
- Coverage Multiplier (if part of plan definition)
- EOI Status (if part of plan definition)
- EOI Requested Coverage Amount (if part of plan definition)

Reimbursement Plans
- Effective Start Date
- Amount (Annual Contribution Amount)
- Employee Elected Contribution Percent (when the Plan Type value is a percentage.
- Employer Contribution Percent

Retirement Plans
- Effective Start Date
- Amount (Annual Contribution Amount)
- Employee Elected Contribution Percent (when the Plan Type value is a percentage.
- Employer Contribution Percent

Catastrophic Health
Dental HMO
Medical PPO
Vision
Basic Life Ins
Voluntary AD&D Ins
Health Reimbursement
Pension 		This data helps to categorize the benefit plan to aid in mapping each line item to the correct benefit plan type. The Benefit Plan Name and Benefit Option/Tier data elements are used together to match up to your Benefit configuration in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Benefit Option/Tier Name (Required)
Field information for the Benefit Option/Tier Name field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
5 String1 between 1–64 characters. This field identifies the Option or Tier Name that will help match the benefit election to the Benefit Plan in Dayforce.

Example for Health Plan:
Med Emp+Family
Dental Employee and Spouse
Vision Family
Catastrophic Health

Example for Life & Disability Plan:
Basic AD&D
Supplemental AD&D
Basic Life Insurance
Critical Illness
Dependent Life Insurance

Example for Reimbursement Plan:
Health Savings Account
Health Care Flex Spending Account
Dependent Care Flex Spending Account
Parking
Transportation

Example for Retirement Plan:
401(k)
403B
457B
Pension Plan
Profit Sharing Plan
Registered Pension Plan

This data helps to categorize the benefit option/tier to help map each line item to the correct benefit option in Dayforce. This data reflects how your current benefit system is named. The Benefit Plan Name and Benefit Option/Tier data elements are used together to match up to your Benefit configuration in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Effective Start Date (Required)
Field information for the Effective Start Date field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
6 Date. Excel right-justified date format or Excel text format yyyy-mm-dd.

The effective start date for the Benefit Option to begin.

Note: The Effective Start Date of the benefit election must be on or after the Effective Start Date of the Plan Option Rate.

Date formatted cells:
09/24/2015
24/09/2015

Text formatted cells:
2015-09-24

 The Effective Start Date for the Benefit Option to begin.
Effective End Date
Field information for the Effective End Date field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
7 Date. Excel right justified date format or Excel text format yyyy-mm-dd. This field is the effective end date for the Benefit Option to be stopped.

Date formatted cells:
09/24/2015
24/09/2015

Text formatted cells:
2015-09-24

The Effective End Date for the Benefit Option to be stopped.
Historical Coverage Start Date
Field information for the Historical Coverage Start Date field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
8 Date. Excel right justified date format or Excel text format yyyy-mm-dd. This data element isn’t required, but it can be helpful information if the coverage started before the Effective Start Date.

Date formatted cells:
09/24/2015
24/09/2015

Text formatted cells:
2015-09-24

 This data element isn’t required, but it can be helpful information if the coverage started before the Effective Start Date.
Amount (Required)
Field information for the Amount field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
9 Numeric. Provide the Coverage Amount if the Benefit Plan Type is Life & Disability. Provide the Contribution Amount if the Benefit Plan Type is Reimbursement. Provide the Contribution Amount if the Benefit Plan Type is Retirement. Don’t enter this value for the Health Benefit Plan Type. Don’t enter an Amount when there is a Percent.

Life & Disability:
50000
100000

Reimbursement:
5000
2500
1000

Retirement:
5 0
100

This value is required when the Benefit Option is defined as an amount and not as a percentage. Don’t populate this value for Health Benefit Plan Type.
Coverage Multiplier (Required)
Field information for the Coverage Multiplier field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
10 Numeric. Provide the Coverage Multiplier if the Benefit Plan Type is Life & Disability and the option is defined with a Coverage Multiplier.

Life & Disability:
1
2
3

 This value is required when the Benefit Plan Type is Life & Disability and the Benefit Plan Option has been defined with a Coverage Multiplier. An example would be Voluntary Life Insurance volume should be 2 times the Employee's salary.
Employee Contribution Percent (Required)
Field information for the Employee Contribution Percent field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
11 Numeric. Provide the Employee Contribution Percent if the Benefit Plan Type is Reimbursement. Provide the Employee Contribution Percent if the Benefit Plan Type is Retirement. Don’t populate this value for Health or Life & Disability Benefit Plan Types. Don’t enter a Percent when there is an Amount. Enter as a numeric value:
10 = 10%
2.5 = 2.5% 		This value is required when the Benefit Option is defined as a percentage and not as an amount. Don’t enter this value for Health or Life & Disability Benefit Plan Types.
Employer Contribution Percent (Required)
Field information for the Employer Contribution Percent field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
12 Numeric. Provide the Employer Contribution Percent if the Benefit Plan Type is Reimbursement. Provide the Employer Contribution Percent if the Benefit Plan Type is Retirement. Don’t enter this value for Health or Life & Disability Benefit Plan Types. Enter as a numeric value:
10 = 10%
2.5 = 2.5% 		This value is required when the Benefit Option is defined as a percentage and not as an amount and there is an Employer Contribution Percent. Don’t enter this value for Health or Life & Disability Benefit Plan Types.
Evidence of Insurability (EOI) Status (Required)
Field information for the Evidence of Insurability (EOI) Status field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
13

Accepted Values:

Pending
Approved
Adjusted
Denied

This field is only valid for the Life & Disability Benefit Plan Type. This field might be required based on the EOI Status in the Benefit Option definition. It must be provided if an EOI Requested Coverage Amount is provided.

Accepted Values:
Pending
Approved
Adjusted
Denied

 This field is only valid for the Life & Disability Benefit Plan Type when the Benefit Option definition requires Evidence of Insurability.
Evidence of Insurability (EOI) Requested Coverage Amount (Required)
Field information for the Evidence of Insurability (EOI) Requested Coverage Amount field
Order Data Type Description Example Why This Is Needed
14 Numeric. This field is only valid for the Life & Disability Benefit Plan Type. This field might be required based on the EOI Status in the Benefit Option definition. It must be provided if an EOI Status is provided. 50000
100000		 This field is only valid for the Life & Disability Benefit Plan Type when the Benefit Option definition requires Evidence of Insurability.

Dependent Beneficiary Benefit Election template fields

For information on the fields in the template, click here.
Employee Identifier (Required)
Field information for the Employee Identifier field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
1 Alphanumeric. Unique value between 1–9 characters.

It allows our system to identify employees uniquely.

Use the same number assigned to the employee in the Getting Started HR data loads.

Note: Upon upload of the template data, Activate converts any lowercase alpha characters found in the Employee Identifier field to uppercase.

3241245
000000006
abc123499

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

First Name (Required)
Field information for the First Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
2 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Legal first name of the employee.

The value provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

Note: Activate‘ compares the First Name and the Last Name with the Employee Identifier in Dayforce. If they don’t match, Activate shows an error message that states that the data is being loaded incorrectly and to check the source data.

 Joe

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Last Name (Required)
Field information for the Last Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
3 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Legal last name of the employee.

The value provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

Note: Activate‘ compares the First Name and the Last Name with the Employee Identifier in Dayforce. If they don’t match, Activate shows an error message that states that the data is being loaded incorrectly and to check the source data.

 Smith

The Employee Identifier, First Name, and Last Name help users identify employees when completing the template. This required field is used to validate that the data being loaded is assigned to the correct employee record.

The values provided must match exactly to an existing employee record in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent/Beneficiary First Name (Required)
Field information for the Dependent/Beneficiary First Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
4 String1 between 1–64 characters Legal first name of the dependent or beneficiary. Make certain that each dependent/beneficiary name is spelled and formatted the same for each of the benefit elections. Jane The dependent or beneficiary first name. It will be used to update Dayforce HCM. It will be included in Benefit Carrier Feed files if that data is required.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent/Beneficiary Last Name (Required)
Field information for the Dependent/Beneficiary Last Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
5 String1 between 1–64 characters.

Legal last name of the dependent or beneficiary.

Make certain that each dependent/beneficiary name is spelled and formatted the same for each of the benefit elections.

Smith The dependent or beneficiary last name and will be used to update Dayforce HCM. It will be included in Benefit Carrier Feed files if that data is required.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Date of Birth (Required for dependents but optional for beneficiaries)
Field information for the Dependent Date of Birth field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
6 Date. Excel right-justified date format or Excel text format yyyy-mm-dd). Date of birth for the Dependent record.

Date formatted cells:
09/24/2015
24/09/2015

Text formatted cells:
2015-09-24

 This data is required for the Dependent record.
Dependent SSN/SIN (Recommended for Dependent records)
Field information for the Dependent SSN/SIN field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
7 String1.
9 characters.		 The Social Security number / Social Insurance / National Insurance Number of the Dependent. 123456789 This data is required only if a Benefit Carrier Vendor requires it in the Carrier Feed file. It’s important for identifying the specific record.
Dependent Gender (Required for dependents but optional for beneficiaries)
Field information for the Dependent Gender field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
8

Accepted Values:
F
M

 Identifies the gender of the Dependent record.

Accepted Values:
F
M

This data is required for the Dependent record.
Dependent/Beneficiary Relationship Type (Required)
Field information for the Dependent/Beneficiary Relationship Type field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
9

Accepted Default Values:

Child
Common Law
Domestic partner Friend
Husband Parent
Sibling
Spouse
Undefined
Wife

The Relationship Types that are defaulted during initial configuration. Additional Relationship Types can be added before importing this file by going to HR Admin -> Relationship Types in Dayforce HCM.

Accepted Default Values:
Child
Common Law
Domestic partner
Friend
Husband
Parent
Sibling
Spouse
Undefined
Wife

This information is used to assign the Relationship Type to the Dependent/Beneficiary record. Additional Relationship Types can be added before importing this file by going to HR Admin -> Relationship Types in Dayforce HCM.
Is the Dependent a Tobacco User/Smoker?
Field information for the Is the Dependent a Tobacco User/Smoker? field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
10

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is required only if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility or benefit qualifier rates.

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is only required if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility or benefit qualifier rates.
Is the Dependent a Student?
Field information for the Is the Dependent a Student? field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
11

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is only required if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility.

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is only required if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility.
Is the Dependent Disabled?
Field information for the Is the Dependent Disabled? field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
12

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is only required if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility.

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

This information is only required if the benefit plan requires the data for determining eligibility.
Is the Person a Dependent? (Required)
Field information for the Is the Person a Dependent? field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
13

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

 Indicate if this person is a Dependent for a Life & Disability benefit plan, enter a default value of “Yes.” Otherwise, set it to “No.” Every person included must be a Dependent and/or a Beneficiary.

Accepted Values:
Yes
No

If this person is a dependent for any benefit plan, enter a default value of “Yes.” Otherwise, set it to “No.”
Benefit Plan Name (only required when assigning Benefit Elections to the Dependent or Beneficiary record)
Field information for the Benefit Plan Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
14 String1 between 1–64 characters. This data is used to assign the dependent or beneficiary to the Benefit Plan election.

Example for Health Plans (Dependent):
Salaried Employee
Health Plan Dental
HMO Plan Vision Plan

Example for Life & Disability Plans(Dependent/Beneficiary):
Basic AD&D Plan
Supplemental AD&D Plan
Basic Life Insurance Plan
Critical Illness Plan Dependent Life Insurance Plan

Example for Retirement Plans (Beneficiary):
401(k) Plan
Managed Pension Plan
Company Profit Sharing
Registered Pension Plan

This data is required to assign the Dependent or Beneficiary record to the Benefit Plan election.

It helps to categorize the benefit plan to help map each line item to the correct benefit plan type.

The Benefit Plan Name and Benefit Option/Tier data elements are used together to match up to your Benefit configuration in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Benefit Option/Tier Name (only required when assigning Benefit Elections to the Dependent or Beneficiary record)
Field information for the Benefit Option/Tier Name field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
15 String1 between 1–64 characters. Identifies the Option or Tier Name that will help match the benefit election to the Benefit Plan in Dayforce.

Example for Health Plans (Dependent):
Med Emp+Family Dental Employee and Spouse Vision Family

Example for Life & Disability Plans (Dependent/Beneficiary):
Basic AD&D
Supplemental AD&D
Basic Life Insurance
Critical Illness
Dependent Life Insurance

Example for Retirement Plans (Beneficiary):
401(k) Pension Plan
Profit Sharing Plan
Registered Pension Plan

This data is required to assign the Dependent or Beneficiary record to the Benefit Plan election. It helps to categorize the benefit option/tier to help map each line item to the correct benefit option in Dayforce. The Benefit Plan Name and Benefit Option/Tier data elements are used together to match up to your Benefit configuration in Dayforce.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Beneficiary Designated Percentage (Required)
Field information for the Beneficiary Designated Percentage field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
16 Numeric. All Beneficiary records are required to include a Beneficiary Designated Percentage value. The value for all of the Primary Beneficiary records must be 100% per Benefit Plan. The value for all of the Contingent Beneficiary records must be 100% per Benefit Plan.

Enter as a numeric value:
100 = 100% 25 = 25%

This information is required to disperse the payout correctly, when needed.
Is the person a Beneficiary? (Required)
Field information for the Is the Person a Beneficiary? field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
17

Accepted Values:
Primary
Contingent
No

This information is to identify if the person is a Primary or Contingent Beneficiary record. Every person included must be a dependent and/or a beneficiary. All beneficiary records are required to include a Beneficiary Designated Percentage value.

Accepted Values:
Primary
Contingent
No

 Identifies if the person is a Primary or Contingent Beneficiary record. All Beneficiary records are required to include a Beneficiary Designated Percentage value.
Dependent's Primary Country
Field information for the Dependent's Primary Country field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
18

Accepted Values:
CAN
USA
GBR

The Dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

Accepted Values:
CAN
USA
GBR

 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.
Dependent Primary Address
Field information for the Dependent Primary Address field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
19 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. 1234 Vermont Ave
12-566 Simcoe St		 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Primary Address 2
Field information for the Dependent Primary Address 2 field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
20 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. Unit 709
Suite 65		 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Primary Address 3
Field information for the Dependent Primary Address 3 field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
21 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. Unit 709
Suite 65		 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Primary City
Field information for the Dependent Primary City field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
22 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. New York
Santa Monica
Toronto		 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.
Dependent Primary State or Province
Field information for the Dependent Primary State or Province field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
23 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. FL
IL
ON 		The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Primary Postal Code
Field information for the Dependent Primary Postal Code field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
24 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. M2H2L5
52953		 The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Dependent Primary County
Field information for the Dependent Primary County field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
25 String1 between 1–64 characters. The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address. West Midlands The dependent's primary address record if it differs from the employee's address.

1 Special characters accepted in the string include: alphanumeric, space, period, apostrophe, dash, number symbol #, comma, underscore, forward slash /, parentheses (), &

Effective Start Date of the Address (Required)
Field information for the Effective Start Date of the Address field
Order Data Type Description Examples Why This Is Needed
26 Date (Excel right justified date format or Excel text format yyyy-mm-dd). The Effective Start Date for the dependent's address.

Date formatted cells:
09/24/2015
24/09/2015

Text formatted cells:
2015-09-24

The Effective Start Date for the dependent's address.

Questions

Select the fields that you want to mass assign

Click the button under the field to show the fields you can assign as a group to your employees. Select as many fields as wanted.

When do you need these new values to be effective on the employee's records?
  • To the current record: Applied on the date of the employee's current active record.
  • To the earliest record: Applied on the date of the employee's earliest record.
  • As of original hire date: Applied on the date the employee was first hired.
  • As of the most recent hire date: Applied on the date the employee was most recently hired.
  • As of next pay period: Applied on the employee's nearest upcoming pay period.
  • As of a specific date: Enter a specific date to apply the new values.

Important: The effective start date of a benefit election must be after the effective start date of the plan option rate.

Select the employees
  • All Employees: Applies the assignment to all employees in the organization.
  • Filter for groups of Employees: Narrow down the number of employees by selecting from the following filters:
    • Employee Details: You can select from the following: Employment Status, Pay Type, Pay Class, Primary Work State/Province, Primary Work Country, Primary Job, Primary Department, Primary Work Onsite, Primary Work Site, Home State/Province, Home Country, and Legal Entity.
    • Employee Group & Policies You can select from the following: Time Entry Policy, Pay Policy, Pay Holiday Group, Pay Group, Entitlement Policy, Time Off Policy, Shift Rotation, Employee Group, and Payroll Policy.

    After you make your selection, the total number of employees who will be updated based on your selection shows.

Select the values that you want to assign
  • Quickly assign values to all selected employees: Select a single value to assign to all selected employees. When you select this option, the fields you selected on the Field Selector page show. Select a value or date for each field, as applicable, to apply to all selected employees.
  • Specify values for each selected employee: Assign different values to different employees. Although this option takes longer, it offers more flexibility.