EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

NOTE 12. EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

The Company has established a retirement plan for eligible employees. The Ameris Bancorp 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan allows a participant to defer a portion of his compensation and provides that the Company will match a portion of the deferred compensation. The Plan also provides for non-elective and discretionary contributions. All full-time and part-time employees are eligible to participate in the Plan provided they have met the eligibility requirements. Generally, a participant must have completed 12 months of employment with a minimum of 1,000 hours and have attained an age of 21.

The aggregate expense under the plan charged to operations during 2015, 2014 and 2013 amounted to $1,430,000, $1,160,000 and $839,000, respectively.