Moving and Relocation Assistance

Newly hired faculty and staff relocating to the Rochester area to work at RIT may be eligible for moving and relocation assistance. The amount and form of assistance are determined at the discretion of the hiring department and may vary based on factors such as budgetary resources, the distance of the relocation, and whether domestic or international.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 made all employer-paid moving and relocation expenses taxable income to the employee, effective January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2025. In 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) extended this provision permanently. Additionally, New York State treats employer-paid moving and relocation expenses as taxable income to the employee.

Due to the taxability of employer-paid moving and relocation expenses, hiring departments have flexibility in both the amount and method of providing assistance. Below are the approved methods:

Method #1: Fixed Moving and Relocation Allowance

This is the recommended method as it is the easiest to administer and offers the recipient the greatest flexibility.  At the time of the offer, a new hire is provided with a fixed dollar amount for moving and relocation assistance.  The hiring department shall initiate an ‘Additional Pay – Moving/Relocation’ for the fixed amount during the employees first pay cycle, and it will be taxed accordingly.  The offer letter should reflect the fixed amount; receipts and documentation are not required.

NOTE: This is expected to be the ONLY method post Workday implementation.
 

Method #2: Fixed Range Moving and Relocation Allowance

This is a good option for departments that want to provide flexibility for new hires but also would like to ensure funds are being used to cover the intended costs.  At the time of the offer, a new hire is provided with a fixed range allowance for moving and relocation expenses, and the employee must substantiate the costs to a dollar amount within the range.  For example, a new hire may be provided with a range of up to $5,000 for a domestic relocation or $10,000 for international relocation. If the employee is relocating domestically and provides receipts totaling $4,500, they will receive a payment of $4,500.  Like the fixed moving and relocation allowance, the hiring department shall initiate an ‘Additional Pay – Moving/Relocation’ for the substantiated amount during the employees first pay cycle, and it will be taxed accordingly.  The offer letter should reflect the fixed range, and receipts and documentation supporting the amount shall be provided to the hiring department. The hiring department may retain the receipts, but they do not need to be submitted to CTO’s Tax or Payroll Departments, as the entire amount will be considered taxable to the employee.

An RIT hiring department, at its own discretion, may choose to pay a moving company directly, either in lieu or in addition to paying a fixed or fixed range moving and relocation allowance to an employee via an ‘Additional Pay - Moving/Relocation.’

The benefit of this option is that the employee will not have to wait until their first paycheck to receive funds attributable to their relocation.  However, this option requires additional steps for the hiring department.

Moving and relocation assistance paid directly to a moving company is taxable to the employee and must be imputed to the employee as taxable income.  Federal and state tax will be withheld from the employee in their next available pay cycle, reducing their net pay by the associated tax withholding.

Procurement Services maintains preferred providers for relocation services, which can be found HERE.  Navigate to ‘HR Services’ and then ‘Relocation.’

The hiring department is responsible for making the arrangements with the selected service provider, creating the purchase order, and remitting payment to the vendor.

At the completion of that process, the hiring department must complete the RSC request below so that the Tax Department can impute the income to the employee in the next pay cycle. 

Moving & Relocation Assistance Request Form