Rail Employer Reporting Instructions

Appendix I: Electronic File Format

 Form BA-9, Report of Separation Allowance or Severance Pay

The information contained in this report, which is required by law under Section 9 of the 

Railroad Retirement Act (RRA) and Section 6 of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance 

Act (RUIA), is needed for two purposes: to establish eligibility for an additional lump-sum 

amount under the RRA and to establish a disqualification period under the RUIA. The 

information is authorized for collection under OMB control number 3220-0173. Failure to 

report or the making of a false or fraudulent report can result in criminal prosecution or 

civil penalties, or both. 

We estimate the electronic versions of this form transmitted by a secure email or a File 

Transfer Protocol (FTP) takes an average of 1 hour and 16 minutes per response to 

complete, including time for reviewing the instructions, getting the needed data, and 

reviewing the completed form. Federal agencies may not conduct or sponsor, and 

respondents are not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 

valid OMB number. If you wish, send comments regarding the accuracy of our estimate 

or any other aspect of this form, including suggestions for reducing completion time, to

Associate Chief Information Officer for Policy and Compliance

Railroad Retirement Board

844 North Rush Street

Chicago, IL 60611-1275.

This exhibit below explains the format for reports filed on CD ROM, electronic files, or an 

upload on ERSNet. For information about the data to be entered, refer to Part V, Chapter 

6.

Form BA-9 Record Format 

Field 

Length

Record 

Position Data and Instructions

1 1 "L"

4 2-5 Four-digit applicable tax year being reported.

1 6 Code "4" for an initial report or an increase adjustment.

Code "M" for a decrease adjustment.

4 7-10 Four-digit BA number assigned by the Railroad Retirement 

Board.

9 11-19 Employee's social security number.

20 20-39

First twenty (20) characters of the employee's surname. Spaces 

in such names as Mc Carthy, St Clair, and De La Cross are 

acceptable.

15 40-54 First fifteen (15) characters of the employee's first name. 
Rail Employer Reporting Instructions

Appendix I: Electronic File Format

 Form BA-9, Report of Separation Allowance or Severance Pay

Form BA-9 Record Format 

Field 

Length

Record 

Position Data and Instructions

1 55 Employee’s middle initial.

1 56 Blank Filler.

8 57-64

An eight-digit separation allowance amount. Do not use a 

decimal place. The format is $$$$$$cc. For adjustments, enter 

the net increase amount to be applied to the initial report. Do not 

sign the field. Zeros should be used to fill the left most positions, 

if necessary.

1 65 

Code 1 for an initial report.

Code 2 for an adjustment report.

Code 3 for a periodic payment - not the final payment.

Code 4 for a periodic payment - final payment.

8 66-73 Date employee relinquished employment rights. Format is 

MMDDCCYY.

1 74 Blank Filler.

8 75-82

Eight-digit compensation amount. Do not use a decimal place. 

Format is ($$$$$$cc). Do not sign the field. Zeros should be 

used to fill the left most positions if necessary. Field may be left 

blank.

4 83-86 Four-digit applicable creditable year being reported.

6 87-92 Total gross amount of separation in whole dollars, $$$$$$. Use 

zero to fill the left most positions as needed.

1 93 Blank Filler.

7 94-100

Show the last rate of pay. Format includes a floating decimal 

place to account for hourly through monthly rates. For example, 

9.99999, 99.9999, 999.999, etc.

1 101

The code corresponding to the period to which the rate applies.

Code 1 = Per Hour

Code 2 = Per Day

Code 3 = Per Week

Code 4 = Per Month
Rail Employer Reporting Instructions

Appendix I: Electronic File Format

 Form BA-9, Report of Separation Allowance or Severance Pay

Form BA-9 Record Format 

Field 

Length

Record 

Position Data and Instructions

1 102

The code corresponding to the employee's normal work week.

Code 5 = Five-Day Week

Code 6 = Six-Day Week

Code 7 = Seven-Day Week

Code 8 = Train and Engine Service

Code 9 = Dining Car and Pullman Service

18 103-120 Blank Filler.

NOTE: The file should be saved as a text (*.txt) file with the record format listed above. 

Reports submitted on CD ROM, secure email, or FTP must be accompanied by Form G440, "Report Specifications Sheet".