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How to set up an employee in QuickBooks Payroll powered by Employment Hero

SOLVEDby QuickBooks63Updated June 10, 2023

Once you have activated payroll, the first step is to add an employee. 

To set up an employee within QuickBooks Payroll:  

  1. Select Employees from the left-hand menu, then select Add Employee on the right side of the screen.
  2. Enter the employee's Personal details, then select Next
  3. Enter Employment Details, i.e. start date, pay rate, etc., then select Next
  4. Enter Bank Details and Account Type for the Employee, then select Next
  5. Enter Tax File Declaration Information
  6. Select Done

Need more help with one of the sections of employee setup? Select the topic below for more details.

  • Enter your employee’s First Name, Middle Name (if applicable), Last Name and Date of Birth.
  • Enter their Residential Address Line and select their suburb from the drop-down menu.
    • Can't find their address on the drop-down menu? The search is powered by Google Maps, so try and search the address on Google Maps to check if it may be recorded in a different format, before entering the address again.
  • Enter their email address and mobile phone number. 
  • Select how you would like QuickBooks Payroll to deliver employee notifications from the drop-down menu under Employee Notifications 
    • If you prefer to manually send your employees their pay slips, select Manual. Note that they will not receive shift notifications with this option. 
    • If you prefer QuickBooks Payroll not to contact your employee, select None
  • Select if you would like to turn on Self-Service for your employee. This will allow your employees to manage their personal details, view pay slips, and apply for leave directly from the Swag mobile app.

Notes:

  • When entering the address, we recommend not ticking Enter Residential Address Manually if the employee has an Australian address. If you enter the residential address manually, note that there will be no validation done to ensure the address is correct.
  • If you select Yes to turn on Self-Service for your employees, they will be sent an email or SMS (based on the Employee Notification setting) with instructions on setting up a Swag password to log into their Self-Service Portal.

Select Next to continue on to adding Employment Details.

  • Select the Start Date that your employee started working for your business.
  • Select their Employment Type from the drop-down menu.
  • Select their Primary Location of employment (if you have multiple locations set up) and select the Pay Schedule, which is how often they are to be paid e.g. Weekly.
  • Enter their pay rate and then select their units of pay, e.g. per Hour, from the drop-down menu. Then, enter approximately how many hours they work per week.
    • These figures do not have to be exact and can be changed later.
  • Select their Primary Pay Category from the drop-down menu. This category is the one you pay employees with, and will show up on their pay slips as earnings.
    • If they are a casual employee, select Casual Ordinary Hours.
    • If they are a permanent part-time or full time employee, select Permanent Ordinary Hours.
  • Select their Leave Allowance Template from the drop-down menu. This template is a pre-created set of leave categories that your employee is entitled to based on their Employment Type. 
  • If they are a casual employee, select Casual Leave.
  • If they are a permanent employee, select either Permanent Leave - No Loading or Permanent Leave - With Loading.  
    • Leave Loading is a percentage of extra earnings on top of their paid leave that they will receive during their leave period. Check with the employee's award or workplace agreement if they are entitled to leave loading.
  • Select if they will be using Timesheets to record their time at work.  
    • Select Use timesheets if: 
    • You intend to use the QuickBooks Payroll timesheets function or other timesheet software, e.g. TSheets.
    • Your employee would like to clock in and out of work using the Swag mobile app.
    • Select Do not use timesheets if you prefer not to record their time in and out of work.
  • Select the method of payment you will be paying your employee. 
    • Electronic means that your employee’s bank details will be included in ABA files created out of the pay run that you can download and upload to the bank.
    • Manual means that your employee’s bank details will be recorded in the system, but will not be included in ABA files.
  • You can also select Cash/Cheque or BPAY if you pay your employee through either of those methods.
  • Choose the Super Fund that your employee is registered to.

Notes:

  • You can choose to enter your employee’s Super Fund later if you do not have it on hand. If you've accidentally selected a super fund but don't have the member number on hand, enter a placeholder member number, e.g. 000000, to continue setting up the employee.
  • You can add more bank accounts and super funds after setup is complete.
  • Enter your employee’s tax file number. If you don’t have their tax file number, select I don’t have a tax file number for this employee and choose the scenario that applies.
  • Enter their Previous Surname, if applicable.
  • In the Tax Calculation Options section, check if the options presented are accurate for your employee. If not, select the pencil icon and select the options that are applicable.
  • Enter the date that the hard copy of your employee’s tax file declaration form was signed by your employee.
  • If you have enabled electronic lodgement in QuickBooks Payroll and want to submit the Tax File Declaration to the ATO, select Lodge the Tax File Declaration electronically with the ATO now.

Notes:

  • The tax file number entered in the tax file number field will go through a validation check.
  • If you haven’t given your employee a hard copy of the Tax File Declaration form, you can select the ATO TFN Declaration Form button, which will bring you to the ATO’s website to download a copy.

 

To help ensure your business' data is secure, any changes made after the initial set up to a user's email address or bank details within Employment Hero will need to be verified. The user will receive an email from Employment Hero providing an overview of the pending changes and if everything looks in order, they must select the verification link inside the email within 72 hours for the changes to take effect.

Important to note: For changes to a user's email address, both the current and new email address will receive a notification. The verification link will be within the notification sent to the new email address.

Next Step

Once you have completed the steps, your employee can now be included in pay runs.

To add more details about the employee, e.g. additional pay rates or setting up deductions and adjustments, select Employees from the left-hand menu, and then select their name, which will bring you to the Employee Details section.

Content sourced from Employment Hero

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