Employment Verification Service providers have been around for over three decades, but new entrants to the pool of vendors have created a crowded space. This article attempts to capture as many Verification of Employment providers across different service models as possible.
Before we get to our list of VOE providers and vendors, here’s why their services are vital.
What is a Verification of Employment (VOE) Provider?
A VOE provider is a third-party vendor specializing in acquiring and sending consumer financial data to businesses and government agencies that need to prove the consumer’s employment and income. These vendors securely acquire or enable access to asset, payroll, income and career data for millions of American consumers directly from the source and provide it to banks, lenders, government agencies and other industries.
Which Business Transactions Require VOE Data?
VOE data confirms an applicant’s employment status and income, which is a critical factor in determining such things as the applicant’s ability to repay a loan or monthly rent.
While lenders and apartment managers aren’t the only businesses ordering VOE data — government assistance programs and some employers require VOE data to verify applications. However, most VOE users are involved in mortgages, credit accounts and auto loans.
A typical VOE report will include the following:
- Income information from paystubs or electronic ACH deposits
- Pay rates and methods (hourly, salaried, bonus)
- Employment status (contractor or full-time)
This data is delivered to the loan application’s verifier via proprietary integration, a provider website, Loan Origination System, Point of Sales, fax, phone call or regular mail.
How do VOE vendors and lending staff source and distribute payroll data?
There are three methods for managing consumer employment information:
1. Instant, Databased VOE
This method is fast, secure, and paperless but costly and not successful 100% of the time. The data is typically accessible via an API call allowing for system-to-system data transmission. Instant VOE data is often integrated with a mortgage lender’s Loan Origination System (LOS), which supports automated underwriting.
Instant VOE reports are obtained by third-party VOE providers who have acquired payroll information from HR departments or payroll providers such as ADP and Paychex. This data is collected each time a new payroll is prepared. Usually, data is filed by Social Security number.
An instant VOE report may also provide the employee’s start dates, current employment status, pay rate, withholdings, current "as-of-date" and other relevant payroll data.
2. Manual VOE
In some cases, the consumer’s payroll information is unavailable on a commercial database, so the verification must be made through direct outreach to the employer. If a lender uses this process, the lender’s staff or an outsourced provider will call the applicant’s employer to confirm the salary and related details provided in the loan application. While manual VOE sounds simple, lenders and employers may play phone tag for days or weeks. Human error is another possible problem, as busy staff can report incorrect salaries or other data. Outsourcing manual verifications help to increase turnaround times and decrease errors.
3. Consumer Permissioned VOE
A VOE vendor in this category facilitates access to VOE information by allowing the consumer to log in to their payroll or asset account, which enables the information to flow to the lender. When the lender orders a VOE, the vendor contacts the consumer in the lender's name and requests access to their payroll or asset account login. Once the consumer gives permission by logging in, the payroll or asset account data is delivered in real time to the lender.
Consumer permissioned VOEs tend to be lower-cost solutions and enable borrowers to manage access to their data.
Now that you understand the basics of the VOE process, here are some of the top VOE vendors in business today.
Argyle
CCC Verify
Driver Facts
EmpInfo
EmployCheck
Equifax Workforce Solutions
Experian Employer Services
JobTrax
PSI Background Screening
Tenstreet
The Work Number®
Thomas & Company
Truework
Truv
Vault Verify
Veri-tax
Verifacts
Verifent
VerificationManager
VerifyAdvantage
Verify Direct
VerifyFast
VerifyToday
VerifyX
VeriSafeJobs
WAGEverify
*We’ve only included the verification services providers we are aware of. We are happy to make any edits/adds. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Final Thoughts
The Verification Services landscape of vendors is broad. If you need to optimize your verification of employment and income process, we can help. Our Verification Waterfall provides lenders a one-click service to fulfill all verifications of employment.
