I am the owner but I also need to pay myself as an employee. How can I add myself to payroll (its says I already exist when I try to add an employee)?

Let me help you sort this out, Userbozz.

You'll have to set up an owner's draw account instead. It's an equity account to track withdrawals of the company's assets to pay an owner. 

For the detailed steps, feel free to check this article: Set up and pay an owner's draw.

Get back to this thread if you need more help from us. We're right here to assist you. Take care!

But I thought the IRS expected an owner to pay themselves a "reasonable" salary?

Good day, @userbozz.

I'm here to answer your queries in QuickBooks Online. As mentioned above, it's recommended to pay yourself with an owner's draw instead of an employee paycheck.

As stated in the IRS guidelines, the procedures for compensating yourself will depend on the type of business structure you elect. 

In regards to your concern, it would be best to reach out to your accountant. They can provide you the right information in paying yourself.

You can also check out this link from the IRS website for more details: 

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/paying-yourself

Let me know how else I can help you with QuickBooks by adding a comment below. I'm more than happy to lend a helping hand. Keep safe!

Let me rephrase the question: regardless of how I withdraw money, either as a salary or distribution, I still have to pay employment taxes etc. How do I calculate those in Quickbooks - I assumed the easiest way would be to set myself up as an employee and let Payroll calculate them for me?

Let me share additional information, @userbozz.

Yes, you can add yourself as an employer. This way, taxes will be taken out of your personal tax return. 

Here's how:

1. Go to the Workers menu.
2. Choose the Employees tab.
   
3. Double-click employee's name or your name.
4. Click the pencil icon beside Pay to edit.
5. Go to How much do you pay (name of the employee) and click the pencil icon to edit.
   
6. Click the drop-down arrow and select Salary.
   • You can leave the amount blank and enter it manually.
7. Hit Done.
   

You can read through these articles as additional reference:

• Salary or draw: how to pay yourself as a business owner
• Set up and pay an owner's draw

Lastly, you'd want to consult with your accountant or a tax professional so you'd be guided on the best way to handle this.

Keep me posted if you have other questions or concerns. I'm just a few posts away.

I was wondering, as a self-employed individual/owner, do you make your "Estimated Quarterly Tax Payments" from your "Owner Draw Account" or from a "Payroll Checking Account" if you have one set up to pay other employees?

Thank you very much for your assistance in answering this question.

Thanks for joining us here today, @angelacct.

I have some information about the account to use when paying taxes. Choosing between owners' draw and payroll checking accounts depends on customer preferences. However, I recommend consulting with an accountant to make sure you're recording your books accordingly.

I've added these articles that have in-depth information about taxes. Do check out the links below.

• Estimated taxes explained
• QuickBooks Self-Employed Overview
• Manage taxes and forms with QuickBooks Self-Employed FAQ

In case you need help with other tasks QBSE, click here to go to our general topics with articles.

Don't hesitate to reach out anytime if you still have questions or concerns with taxes or accounts. I'm more than happy to answer them for you. Take care and stay safe.

Shella, thanks so much for the information & related links.

As always, QB Community Members are very helpful and supportive. I really appreciate it.  

Hi there, @angelacct.

Glad to hear that we're able to help you out with your account's concern.

Know that our doors are always open to assist you if you have any questions with QuickBooks. Just visit us here at your most convenient time. Have a lovely day!

Apparently, if your name and email are used for the Primary Admin on the account, you cannot enter yourself as an employee. Go to Settings, Your Company, Manage Users and temporarily change the Name and Email under the Primary Admin. QBO will then let you add yourself as an employee, after which you can change the Name and Email of the Primary Admin back to your own without generating an error message.

This didn't work for me....has anyone found a way around this?

Add a middle initial to differentiate your name. I have to do this with contractors who are working through their first 90 days before becoming employees on payroll. Their profiles as contractors include a middle initial. When I set them up as employees, I do not use a middle initial. This of course convolutes the use of TSheets if they're using the same email, requiring them to set up a new T Sheets account once they become an employee.