{"id":81853,"title":"Central: Payroll + benefits for startups. Save weeks of work \u0026 fines.","tagline":"The first back-office platform that automates all the painful compliance work.","body":"# **📝 TL;DR:**\n\n* [Central](https://www.centralhq.com/?utm_source=launchyc) is the first payroll \u0026 benefits platform for startups that automates all the painful compliance work – saving you weeks of work and fines.\n* **Start for free -** [**www.centralhq.com**](https://www.centralhq.com/?utm_source=launchyc)\n  * _10 mins to setup + we’ll do all the migration work._\n\n# ——\n\nFounders are drowning in back-office work. Even with the current recommended platforms, payroll, benefits, compliance was a never-ending pain in the…\n\nWhy do founders still need to understand all this?\n\nWhy do founders still have to register in multiple states to run payroll, set up worker’s compensation, pay random payroll related taxes, deal with scary government mail, update addresses across state filings, troubleshoot with insurance companies?\n\nA tragedy…\n\n![uploaded image](/media/?type=post\u0026id=81853\u0026key=user_uploads/206328/d5e37454-5cab-44bb-8571-603fab041299)\n\n# ——\n\n# **👋 HELLO CENTRAL: Save weeks of work \u0026 avoid fines.**\n\nCentral is the first payroll, benefits \u0026 ops platform designed for busy founders, not HR/finance professionals.\n\nUnlike other platforms, Central handles each compliance task from start to finish. You don’t need to learn or do anything. You just keep building because that’s what truly matters.\n\n![uploaded image](/media/?type=post\u0026id=81853\u0026key=user_uploads/206328/953f0471-3542-449f-adf7-4b7770223603)\n\nSo, here’s everything you get:\n\n**Payroll \u0026 compliance**\n\n1. **Hire and pay anyone globally:** Central supports founders \u0026 employees in all 50 U.S. states and contractors in 200+ countries. We’ll handle reimbursements, offer letters, NDAs, I-9 verification, and more.\n2. **Automated payroll state registrations:** Existing platforms make founders interface with state agencies, leading to errors \u0026 fines. Central automates this entire process resulting in accurate tax IDs and withholding rates.\n3. **Automated payroll tax filings:** Existing platforms cover some taxes, and leave founders to handle the rest, leading to mistakes and fines. Central pays all taxes and verifies payments with federal, state, and local agencies.\n4. **Automated worker’s comp:** When you hire your first employee in a state, you need state-specific worker’s compensation insurance. Existing platforms make you go to other platforms to get a policy, leading to missed coverage and fines. Instead, Central sets it up and ensures payment automatically.\n5. **Government mail monitoring**: Founders often miss important government mail due to address changes. To combat this, Central adds a virtual mailing address to all of your state filings. This virtual address stays the same when you move, so Central can notify you about government mail and take the appropriate action.\n\n**Business compliance \u0026 insurance**\n\n1. **Foreign qualifications \u0026 city registrations:** Central handles the necessary business filings \u0026 the registered agent in your HQ city/state and other states when required.\n2. **Continuous BOI reporting to FinCEN:** The Corporate Transparency Act requires companies to submit beneficial ownership information (BOI) reports to FinCEN. Central files this for you and keeps it updated as officers and their information change.\n3. **Business insurance:** Central can set up insurance for general liability, directors and officers, cyber, errors and omissions, and more.\n\n**Benefits**\n\n1. **Medical, dental \u0026 vision insurance:** Central offers plans from top carriers for small groups and individuals. We automate setup and payments, making it easy for you. Pranav (co-founder at Central) is a licensed broker and expert and can guide you to avoid common mistakes.\n2. **Life insurance:** Integrated with payroll for pre-tax deductions.\n3. **401k:** Central partners with Guideline to provide easy payroll integration and pre-tax deductions.\n\nAnd, support via a shared Slack channel, phone \u0026 email.\n\n# ——\n\n## **🏎️ GET STUFF DONE INSTANTLY VIA SLACK**\n\nExisting platforms are a maze. You need to dig through 7 layers of UI with a shovel to get anything done.\n\nWith Central, you simply ask our bot, and it handles it for you (with your confirmation).\n\nIt’s like your company’s first head of HR/finance.\n\nOur customers love the ease of:\n\n* **Retrieving company info \u0026 docs:** Get company EIN, certificate of incorporation, W-9, etc.\n* **Updating employee info:** Adjust salaries, start dates, titles, etc.\n* **Accessing personal docs:** Find offer letters, paystubs, health insurance cards, W-2s etc.\n* **Tracking offers \u0026 payroll:** See when employees sign, onboard, and get paid.\n* **Understanding their paystubs:** Break down taxes, pay dates, and more.\n\n# ——\n\n# **🎁 START FOR FREE -** [www.centralhq.com](https://www.centralhq.com/?utm_source=launchyc)\n\n_10 mins to setup + we’ll do all the migration work_\n\n![uploaded image](/media/?type=post\u0026id=81853\u0026key=user_uploads/206328/66b08b5c-d351-471e-8ddf-f16a0403be18)\n\n","slug":"LID-central-payroll-benefits-for-startups-save-weeks-of-work-fines","created_at":"2024-07-01T19:57:33.995Z","updated_at":"2026-05-25T01:58:08.283Z","total_vote_count":135,"url":"https://www.ycombinator.com/launches/LID-central-payroll-benefits-for-startups-save-weeks-of-work-fines","share_image_url":"https://www.ycombinator.com/media/?type=post\u0026id=81853\u0026key=user_uploads/206328/953f0471-3542-449f-adf7-4b7770223603","company":{"id":29327,"name":"Central","slug":"central","url":"https://centralhq.com","logo":"https://bookface-images.s3.amazonaws.com/small_logos/3fd82ba2859916808ff0e5edd50e4947e539c317.png","batch":"Summer 2024","industry":"B2B","tags":["Fintech","B2B","HR Tech","Payroll","AI"],"search_path":"https://bookface.ycombinator.com/company/29327"}}