QuickBooksHelpIntuit

QuickBooks Payroll billing: What’s changing and how to prepare

by Intuit•118• Updated 1 month ago

From 15 June 2026, QuickBooks Payroll is changing how it calculates your monthly per-employee charge. Instead of billing based on who payroll was run for during the month, you’ll be billed based on which employees are marked as Active at the start of your billing month. This article explains what the change means, how employee status works under the new model, and what you need to do to make sure your bill is accurate.

What is changing and when

Before 15 June 2026	From 15 June 2026
Billed for every employee payroll was run for during the month.	Billed based on employees with Active status at the start of the billing month.

The base fee and per-employee fee amounts stay the same. Only the method used to count employees is changing.

How Active and ‘Not on payroll’ status works

From 15 June 2026, your monthly bill is based on which employees are marked as Active at the start of your billing month.

Active: The employee is on your current payroll. They will be included in your monthly bill.
Not on payroll: The employee is not currently being paid — for example, they are on extended leave, have left the business, or are a seasonal worker currently not engaged. They will not be included in your monthly bill.

Important: Billing is calculated at the start of each billing month. If an employee’s status is not updated before your Billing Day of Month (BDOM), the change will take effect the following month.

Review and update your employee statuses

Before your BDOM in June 2026, check that all employees have the correct status. Any employee who is not currently on a pay run should be marked as ‘Not on payroll’.

Important note: If you don’t update employee statuses before your BDOM, you may be charged for employees who are no longer active on your payroll.

Step 1: Open your employee list

Go to All apps, select Payroll, then select Employees (Take me there).
Select the Active Employees dropdown and choose All Employees.
Review each employee and identify anyone who is no longer actively running payroll.

Step 2: Update each employee’s status

For each employee whose status needs updating:

Select the employee, then select Edit in the Employment details section.
Change their Status to Not on payroll (or Active if applicable).
Complete any additional required fields.
Select Save when finished.

What your first bill will look like

As part of the transition to the new billing cycle, your first bill on or after 15 June 2026 will include two separate charges:

A final charge for the previous month under the current billing model
A charge for the upcoming month under the new billing model

This is a one-time occurrence. From the following month, you will receive a single charge as normal.

See what your first bill might look like

Worked example: Employee status and billing

Your BDOM is 20 June. You have 5 active employees at the start of the billing month.

Charge 1 (previous month, current model): £5.00 base + (5 × £1.50) = £12.50
Charge 2 (upcoming month, new model): £5.00 base + (5 active employees × £1.50) = £12.50

Total on that bill: £25.00. From July onwards, your bill returns to £12.50/month.

The table below shows how billing changes depending on whether employee statuses are updated before 15 June.

Employee	Current status	Status after review	Billed now?	Billed from June?
Alice	Active	Active	Yes	Yes
Bob	Inactive — not run on payroll	Not on payroll	No	No
Carol	Active	Active	Yes	Yes
Dave	Inactive — not run on payroll	Active (not updated)	No	Yes

In this example, Dave is not currently on a pay run but his status has not been updated. Under the new model he will be billed at the start of the month. Updating his status to ‘Not on payroll’ before the BDOM removes him from the bill.

Product name and fee changes

There are no changes to the fees for QuickBooks Online Payroll Core.

If you currently use QuickBooks Online Core Payroll alongside a QuickBooks Time product, your subscription will be updated to the equivalent bundled plan. Your QuickBooks Time access is included in the new plan.

You can upgrade, manage, or cancel your subscription at any time. Make changes in Subscriptions & Billing. If you change your plan, the current list price will apply.

Full product and fee breakdown

Current product	New product name	Fees from 15 June 2026
QuickBooks Online Core Payroll	QuickBooks Online Payroll Core	Base fee: £5.00/monthPer employee: £1.50/monthNo change to fees
QuickBooks Online Core Payroll + QuickBooks Time Premium	QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium(QuickBooks Time Premium included)	Base fee: £10.00/monthPer employee: £2.00/month
QuickBooks Online Core Payroll + QuickBooks Time Elite	QuickBooks Online Payroll Elite(QuickBooks Time Elite included)	Base fee: £15.00/monthPer employee: £3.00/month

More help

If you have any questions about the billing change or need help updating your employee statuses, our support team is here. You may also find these articles helpful: